Valentines, like other vintage ephemera, often reflected attitudes of the day that may not be comfortable viewing today. The cards shown on this page reflect the cultural and racial prejudices of their day employed as comic fodder and light entertainment. Some cards may be more problematic than others. It is easy to forgot how pervasive this type of stereotypical imagery was in popular culture in the last century. Items like these as mundane, everyday, fare are not that far in our past, nor entirely vanquished. As relics that tell the story of our past, warts and all, we present these images in the Vintage Valentine Museum so we cannot forget how we got to the place we are now.
Have I a Chinaman's chance to be your Valentine.
5" x 3 5/8"
dated 1937
Mechanical Flat
Marked: Made in U.S.A.
no other publisher's marks
dated 1937
Mechanical Flat
Marked: Made in U.S.A.
no other publisher's marks
You are my NUMBER ONE Valentine.
3 1/8" x 4 3/8"
circa 1950s, 1960s
Flat
marked: made in U.S.A.
no other publisher's marks
circa 1950s, 1960s
Flat
marked: made in U.S.A.
no other publisher's marks
Got a YEN for a velly nice Valentine How about me?
7" x 2"
circa 1960s
Flat
made in USA
circa 1960s
Flat
made in USA
