Historic Treasure of the Week - February 17, 1991
By Tim Weir and Cindy Weir
Vigo County Historical Society
Historic Treasure of the Week - February 17, 1991
By Tim Weir and Cindy Weir
Vigo County Historical Society
Rich, colorful Valentine’s Day history
Valentine: 1) a card, a message, or a gift given in person or anonymously on Saint Valentine’s Day; 2) a sweetheart chosen or greeted on this day.
Valentine: Early Christian priest stoned and beheaded in 270 A.D. by Romans for performing marriages.
These are the definitions given in dictionaries about valentines. But, for most of us, a valentine is red hearts, lace, cherubs, roses and violets all rolled, glued and pressed into a beautiful card, with a sweet verse.
Now celebrated on Feb. 14, this holiday originally was a gamy pagan fertility ritual, but, in 496 A.D., Pope Gelasius made it into a feast of love in honor of St. Valentine. The French took it over with great fervor. It is recorded that a young French woman was fined for kissing her valentine so hard she gave him a nosebleed.
Henry VIII, the great English lover, gave this holiday a charter in 1537, and so the custom came to America with early settlers.
Early American valentines were handmade from bits of scrap paper, lace and tinsel. These sometimes had hand painting and paper-cut work used on them, along with an original verse or one taken from a penny book called a valentine writer. Very popular ones were the heart in hand and the cut paper lyre interwoven with a wreath of the givers’ hair. One of the earliest manufacturers of valentines was Esther Howland, who began her business in Worchester, Mass., in 1848. By the 1870s, she was shipping valentines nationwide and taking in more than $100,000 per year.
Other early makers of valentines were George Whitney, Jotham Taft and Berlin-Jones Co. One of the top English firms was Raphael Tuck Co. All of these are much sought after.
Although most of us think of lacy, frilly valentines, others that should be cherished are sad ones from the Civil War picturing soldiers with their sweethearts.
Some valentines are quite humorous, while others are just plain cruel. Some made fun of fools, drunks, or philanderers, while others humanized onions, spoons and forks, and whiskey bottles.
Early in the 20th century, romance and things romantic became quite fashionable. Illustrators like Kate Greenway, Ellen Cappsaddle and John Winsch created valentines decorated with wonderful children, flowers, birds and animals.
From this lacy, frilly Edwardian time comes our treasure of the week, and a treasure it is.
Rather large, at 10 inches by 11 inches, the valentine unfolds with a honeycomb of red crepe paper. The background is a bower of roses and hearts. The foreground is a paper lattice fence with blue forget-me-nots. In between is a fancy flowered boat with a small boy and girl. She’s playing a mandolin with a ribbon of hearts, while he holds an envelope with a heart and a bunch of roses. This valentine is truly a visual delight. This valentine, along with many others, can be seen at the museum.
The Historical Museum of the Wabash Valley, 1411 S. Sixth St., is open from 1 to 4 p.m. Tuesday through Sunday.