Contents

Collection Overview

Biographical Note

Scope and Contents of the Collection

Organization of the Collection

Search Terms

Valentines Collection, ca. 1840s-1980s

Finding Aid

Finding aid prepared by Ralitsa Donkova.

© 2006

Biographical Note

Esther A. Howland was born in 1826 in Worcester, Massachusetts to Southworth Allen Howland, a stationer and bookseller. She graduated from Mount Holyoke College in 1847. Howland began making valentines in her home in 1849 after receiving an elaborate valentine from England. Her business quickly grew, and she turned her house into a valentine factory. She sold the business to George C. Whitney in 1881. Howland is credited with establishing the commercial valentine industry in the U.S. She died at 78 in 1904 in Quincy, Massachusetts.

Marguerite A. Welcher Davol was born on July 2, 1928 in East Peoria, Illinois. She graduated from the University of Colorado in 1951 with majors in English and Education. Later she did graduate study in American literature at Kansas State University (1953-54), University of Rochester (1956-57), and University of Massachusetts (1966). Davol was a children's author, a poet and a teacher at the Mount Holyoke College Gorse Child Center from 1966-1992. She married Stephen Herbert Davol and they had three children.

Stephen Herbert Davol was born on February 16, 1928 in Malden, Massachusetts to Herbert and Mary Davol. He received a B.A. (1950) and an M.P.S. (1952) in Psychology from the University of Colorado, and a Ph.D. (1958) in Psychology from the University of Rochester. He was a professor of psychology and education at Mount Holyoke College from 1960-1982. He died at 54 on July 8, 1982 in South Hadley, Massachusetts.

Marjorie Eames donated the valentines in the collection in 1993. Her family's business, the Eames and Eames Company of Cohasset, Mass., made and sold hand-painted valentines.

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Scope and Contents of the Collection

The Valentines collection spans the dates 1840s-1980s, with the bulk 1890s-1910s. It is arranged into four series: The Marjorie Eames Collection, The Marguerite Davol Collection, Valentines from Helen Laws, Helen M. Newman and Anonymous Donors, and Books on Valentines. The series reflect the separate collections integrated into one Valentines collection.

The collection contains hand-made and commercially-made valentines from the U.S. and Europe. Some of the manufacturers represented are the George C. Whitney Co., Raphael Tuck and Sons of London, Earnest Nister of Boston, and Hallmark. There is an extensive variety of formats: envelopes, paper lace, postcards, wall hangings, and mechanical pull-downs. Notable are three cards made by Mount Holyoke College alumna Esther Howland who is credited with establishing the commercial valentine industry in the U.S.

The Marjorie Eames collection includes European and American valentines spanning 1840s-1980s, valentine ephemera and an 1880 scrapbook of valentines.

The Marguerite Davol collection chiefly consists of multi-layered paper lace valentines from the 1890s manufactured in Germany and the United States.

The Valentines from Helen Laws, Helen M. Newman and Anonymous Donors include 1890s valentines and envelopes. Included are cards made by Esther Howland and by the George C. Whitney Co.

Included are two books on the history of valentines, A History of Valentines by Ruth Webb Lee and Valentines: A Loving Remembrance by Jean P. Favalora. Both mention Esther Howland and show valentines housed in this collection.

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Search Terms

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Organization of the Collection

This collection is organized into four series:

• Valentines from the Marjorie Eames Collection (1840s-1980s)
• Valentines from the Marguerite A. Davol Collection (ca. 1870s-ca. 1920s)
• Valentines from Helen Laws, Helen M. Newman, and Anonymous Donors (ca. 1890s-1987)
• Books on valentines (1952, 1995)

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Series 1: Valentines from the Marjorie Eames Collection ca. 1840s-ca. 1980s 3 boxes

Contains valentines spanning 1840s-1980s, valentine ephemera, and a scrapbook. Featured are two cards made by George C. Whitney Co and an array of German stand-up paper lace cards. The series contains an extensive variety of pre-World War I postcards. Many are manufactured by Raphael Tuck and Sons of London and Earnest Nister of Boston. Of special note are the 1850s paper lace envelopes and letters and a heart-shaped valentine drawn by R.F. Outcault manufactured by Raphael Tuck and Sons ca. 1904. Included are a number of German early twentieth century pull-out valentines and wall hangings. The 1950s-1980s cards are mostly American and mass-produced; many are pull-downs. Included are fragments of broken valentines and "swag," little paper embellishments sold in sheets that could be cut out and pasted on to personalize cards. The valentine ephemera include heart-shaped push pins, a chocolates box, heart centerpiece decorations, a small box of "swag," and a small wooden doll. The scrapbook was compiled by an eleven-year old boy, Richard W.A. English, in December 1880 and contains contemporary valentines. Rounding out the series are sketches, articles and newspaper clippings on valentines and the history of valentines.

Series 2: Valentines from the Marguerite A. Davol Collection ca.1870s-ca. 1920s 4 folders

Contains valentines that Marguerite and Stephen Davol collected over the years, and Mrs. Davol donated in February 1993. Chiefly consists of multi-layered 1890s valentines. Some are on the same basic layer, and many are adorned with swag, little paper embellishments sold on sheets that could be cut out and pasted on to personalize cards. Included are German "boxed" valentines from the 1880s that have many layers of paper and fabric that make them three-dimensional, an 1883 valentine by L. Prang and Co. of Boston, an 1893 George C. Whitney book-card, a few cards by Raphael Tuck and Sons of London, and some fragments.

Series 3: Valentines from Helen Laws, Helen M. Newman, and Anonymous Donors, ca. 1890s-1987 11 folders

Contains 1890s valentines and envelopes, including three valentines manufactured by Esther Howland, four valentines by the George C. Whitney Co., and three hand-made cut paper valentines. One valentine came from the memory book of Alice Carter, Class of 1887. Included are 1980s cards produced by Mount Holyoke College and featuring photographs of Howland's valentines housed in the collection. Rounding out the series is a first edition "Love" stamp printed by the United States Postal Service in February 1982.

Series 4: Books on valentines 1952, 1995 2 volumes

Contains two books on the history of valentines, A History of Valentines by Ruth Webb Lee and Valentines: A Loving Remembrance by Jean P. Favalora. Both mention Mount Holyoke alumna Esther Howland as the initiator of the valentines industry in the U.S. Favalora's book is inscribed by the author.

Series 1: Valentines from the Marjorie Eames Collection ca. 1840s-ca. 1980s 3 boxes

Series 2: Valentines from the Marguerite A. Davol Collection ca.1870s-ca. 1920s 4 folders

Series 3: Valentines from Helen Laws, Helen M. Newman, and Anonymous Donors, ca. 1890s-1987 11 folders

Series 4: Books on valentines 1952, 1995 2 volumes