Valentine card, “Yours For Ever,” by Esther Howland (Worcester, Massachusetts, ca. 1860-1880). Courtesy of the American Antiquarian Society, Worcester, Massachusetts.
Valentine’s Day greeting cards did exist before Esther Howland came into the picture, and it was an important holiday in England in the time of my stories. In fact, according to this article, an English Valentine Ms. Howland received was the impetus for what soon became a highly successful business. I love women’s success stories, and I especially like Esther’s because it seems she was actually a good boss. I also like her because she came from Worcester, Massachusetts, my hometown.
You can find out a great deal more about Esther Howland here at Wikipedia.
Happy Valentine’s Day. I hope it brings you something beautiful. Chocolate isn’t so bad, either.
Note: If you click on the link in the picture caption, you can enlarge the card and see all the glorious details.
Love,
Loretta