Americans have often used objects to signal their belonging to social clubs, religious and educational institutions, political parties, and other groups. Whether they are meant to be worn as personal adornments, like fraternity pins, or used in certain occasions or rituals, like church silver, objects often play a central role in how and why we identify ourselves as part of various communities. In this gallery talk, Caryne Eskridge, the Marcia Brady Tucker Fellow in the Department of American Decorative Arts, examines several objects in the American decorative arts collection and discusses their roles in group identity.