Saturday, February 07, 2009

Vinegar Valentines and Penny Dreadfuls

There was a time when love wasn't in the air when it came to Valentine's Day. This was a dark side of card giving that even Hallmark would want to forget.

In the late 1800's and early to mid 1900's some people would send a Valentine's Day card that was nick named "Vinegar Valentines" or "Penny Dreadfuls". These cards were usually sent anonymously to a person who wasn't so dear to the sender's heart. The card inside was usually on a single sheet of colored paper with a less than flattering poem written on it along with an even more insulting picture.

Here are some examples of the Valentine's Day cards that were sent, minus the love. (click on the picture to see full size.)









2 comments:

Joe Salama said...

Nice with the dreadfuls.

Unknown said...
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