Hello, In this morning's "MassMoments" e-mail there is a story about the first, American-made "Valentines." http://www.massmoments.org/moment.cfm?mid=52 Esther HOWLAND was from a Worcester, MA, family, and her father was a "stationer." One holiday she received a "Valentine's Day card" from a friend in England. And .. the rest is history. The site for the "History Channel" (cable TV) shows different things which mention "Valentine." http://www.history.com/minisites/valentine/ and this offers a little history: http://www.infoplease.com/spot/valentinesdayhistory.html http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Valentine's_Day .. All I remember about Valentine's Day as a child in 50's is that "little box" - all decorated in red and white, with a slot in the top - where we placed the "little cards" we had written out for every child in the class. And the preparation for that activity. :o)