Today, Valentine’s Day is often associated with mass-produced chocolates, bouquets and instant digital messages. However, the tradition of this special romantic day has a far richer and more intricate history rooted in the Victorian Era. What began as an exclusive luxury for the upper class eventually transformed into a widespread day to celebrate love.
In the 1800s, Valentine’s Day was highly beloved in the olden days. However, it was inaccessible for the common people and remained a luxury mainly for the wealthy to enjoy. This was due to the expensive fees for sending the postcards or notes, rendering long-distance courtships impossible. This all came to an end when Rowland Hill, an English government postal official who observed that postal services were charged by the distance and number of pages rather than weight, made a radical change that set a cog in the system turning for the better. He then proposed the idea of sending a post for the cost of only 1 penny.
On January 10th 1840, the proposal was accepted, and this was the birth of the Uniform Penny Post and mass-produced Valentine cards. The turnover rate for this was almost unimaginable. During the first season of Valentine’s, there was an estimated number of 400,000 Valentine cards sent through the postal system in Great Britain. The volume was so great that the postmen were given refreshments and breaks to battle the towering amount of letters. By 1871, the General Post Office in London processed more than 1.2 million Valentine Cards for the public.
Through this system, it also prompted the advancement of the postal system as well as the Valentine’s cards themselves. Techniques such as embossing, chromolithography, and layered paper elements were used to make the letters. The Victorians would also add their own unique elements to the ready-made letters to make them all the more special for their significant other.
Valentine’s cards in the 1800s
On the other side of the pond, America is also practising the tradition of letter posting. However, due to the distance between Great Britain and America, getting fancy Victorian embellished letters was expensive and hard, so America’s population ended up with a plainer look for their Valentine’s cards. The dreary Valentine’s cards came to an end when Esther Howland, an American artist, received an English Valentine’s card in the mail from a family friend from England. Convinced that she is able to replicate and make America’s own version of Valentine cards, she convinced her father to order her lace paper and other supplies to attempt it herself. With steely determination, a dozen samples were made and her brother helped her to market them. They only expected $200 in orders; however, both of them were wholly surprised when a whooping $5000 worth of orders were made. Esther, knowing that the workload would be too much on her own, recruited her friends to help bring her idea to life. To make it special, all her letters were marked with a small letter H to denote it as her product. From then on, Esther Howland was known as the mother of American Valentine.
Esther Howland, Mother of American Valentine
The Victorian Era marked a pivotal turning point in the history of Valentine’s Day. Postal reforms such as the Uniform Penny Post made expressions of love affordable and attainable, while artistic advancements elevated Valentine cards into cherished keepsakes. Across the Atlantic, innovators like Ester Howland further shaped the tradition. Together, these developments cemented Valentine’s Day as a celebration not just of love, but of connection that continues to evolve with each generation.
Esther Howland’s Valentine card
Written by: Caelyn and Grace
Edited by: Sherman
