Uploaded January 2022 | Updated September 2026, 3 weeks ago
Valentine's Day wasn't always a big deal in the U.S. So when did Americans start exchanging Valentines? And how have Valentines changed over time? Spoiler alert: Not all Valentines were nice.
Sources:
“The Fashioning of a Modern Holiday: St. Valentine’s Day, 1830-1870,” Leigh Eric Schmidt, Winterthur Portfolio, The University of Chicago Press, Winter 1993
America’s Favorite Holidays: Candid Histories, Bruce David Forbes, 2014
“Valentine’s Day,’ The Torch Light and Public Advertiser, Apr 8, 1823
“Valentine’s Day,” Carlisle Weekly Herald, Feb 26, 1845
“St. Valentine’s Day,” New York Daily Herald, Feb 14, 1853
“St. Valentine and Valentines,” Harper’s Weekly, Feb 13, 1858
A History of Valentines, Ruth Webb Lee, 1952
“Made First Valentine In United States,” The Boston Globe, Feb 14, 1901
“At Age of 75: Miss E.A. Howland Dies in Quincy,” The Boston Globe, Mar 16, 1904
“Esther Howland and the Business of Love,” Ellen Terrell, Library of Congress Blog, Mar 23, 2016
“Few Comic Valentines,” The Indianapolis News, Jan 30, 1894
“Comic Valentines,” The Gazette, Feb 10, 1895
“’Comic Valentines,’ They are Merely Anonymous Letters in Another Form,” Evening Star, Feb 9, 1907
“Comic Valentines Cause More Sorrow Than Death in Family or a Dinner Without Dessert,” Knoxville Sentinel, Feb 11, 1908
“Comic Valentines Soon to Be Extinct; No More Are Made,” Evansville Press, Feb 14, 1921
“Comic Valentines Still On Market; But Not Popular As In Old Days,” Evansville Press, Feb 7, 1924
“Gone is the Comic Valentine, Miss Boston Will Not Buy It,” The Boston Globe, Feb 10, 1924
“Comic Valentines Are Supplemented by ‘Cute’ Variety,” The Times Dispatch, Feb 14, 1945
“’Vinegar Valentines’ Added Sour Note to Special Day,” Mary Kiss, Kingsport Times-News, Feb 9, 1984
“The Book of Love Is Being Rewritten – Again!” Advertisement, The Hanford Sentinel, Feb 8, 1988
“Rare Book of the Month: Valentines of Days Gone By,” Wendi Maloney, Library of Congress, Feb 14, 2018
“Stand By Stationary,” Ron Charles, National Post, Feb 13, 2020
“Valentine’s Day,” National Retail Federation, 2021
Valentine's Day wasn't always a big deal in the U.S. So when did Americans start exchanging Valentines? And how have Valentines changed over time? Spoiler alert: Not all Valentines were nice.
Sources:
“The Fashioning of a Modern Holiday: St. Valentine’s Day, 1830-1870,” Leigh Eric Schmidt, Winterthur Portfolio, The University of Chicago Press, Winter 1993
America’s Favorite Holidays: Candid Histories, Bruce David Forbes, 2014
“Valentine’s Day,’ The Torch Light and Public Advertiser, Apr 8, 1823
“Valentine’s Day,” Carlisle Weekly Herald, Feb 26, 1845
“St. Valentine’s Day,” New York Daily Herald, Feb 14, 1853
“St. Valentine and Valentines,” Harper’s Weekly, Feb 13, 1858
A History of Valentines, Ruth Webb Lee, 1952
“Made First Valentine In United States,” The Boston Globe, Feb 14, 1901
“At Age of 75: Miss E.A. Howland Dies in Quincy,” The Boston Globe, Mar 16, 1904
“Esther Howland and the Business of Love,” Ellen Terrell, Library of Congress Blog, Mar 23, 2016
“Few Comic Valentines,” The Indianapolis News, Jan 30, 1894
“Comic Valentines,” The Gazette, Feb 10, 1895
“’Comic Valentines,’ They are Merely Anonymous Letters in Another Form,” Evening Star, Feb 9, 1907
“Comic Valentines Cause More Sorrow Than Death in Family or a Dinner Without Dessert,” Knoxville Sentinel, Feb 11, 1908
“Comic Valentines Soon to Be Extinct; No More Are Made,” Evansville Press, Feb 14, 1921
“Comic Valentines Still On Market; But Not Popular As In Old Days,” Evansville Press, Feb 7, 1924
“Gone is the Comic Valentine, Miss Boston Will Not Buy It,” The Boston Globe, Feb 10, 1924
“Comic Valentines Are Supplemented by ‘Cute’ Variety,” The Times Dispatch, Feb 14, 1945
“’Vinegar Valentines’ Added Sour Note to Special Day,” Mary Kiss, Kingsport Times-News, Feb 9, 1984
“The Book of Love Is Being Rewritten – Again!” Advertisement, The Hanford Sentinel, Feb 8, 1988
“Rare Book of the Month: Valentines of Days Gone By,” Wendi Maloney, Library of Congress, Feb 14, 2018
“Stand By Stationary,” Ron Charles, National Post, Feb 13, 2020
“Valentine’s Day,” National Retail Federation, 2021
