Archival material | Cotsen Children’s Library

From the collection of Doris Frohnsdorff. Album of Victorian chromolithographed Christmas and Valentine’s Day greeting cards. [England: between 1872 and 1878] (Cotsen 33205)

Contained within the unassuming binding above lies a secret treasure trove of Victorian ephemera. Compiled between 1872 and 1878 by none other than Helen Leech Potter, Beatrix Potter’s mother, this quarto volume is an album of cards for Valentine’s Day and Christmas given to young Beatrix, beginning when she was six years old. The cards are mostly from family (especially “Mama” and “Papa” and “Grandmama Leech”) and family friends like the Gaskells, Nurse MacKenzie, Dora Hollins, and a certain Mr Goul. Perhaps few artifacts remain that can rival the perfection with which this album documents the ornate and frilly taste of the late 19th century English middle class.

Located at the head of the front free endpaper, this inscription indicates that the album itself was an 1872 Valentine’s gift for Beatrix (full name Helen Beatrix Potter) from her affectionate mother.

Card at top of leaf [3]

Interestingly, the cards contain no hand written messages or signatures. Either notes accompanying the cards were discarded when the cards were pasted into the album or the sentiments printed on the cards themselves (which as you will see, can sometimes be quite lengthy) were deemed sufficient. Helen Potter diligently recorded the name of the gifter and the year the card was given, either inside the card or immediately below it.

“From MacKenzie 1872”, Helen Potter’s inscription inside the card shown above. “Mackenzie” was Beatrix’s nurse.

Card at bottom of leaf [3], “From Mama 1872”

Leaf [4], "Grandmama Leech 1872", perhaps the biggest fan of paper lace.

Card on leaf [4], “Grandmama Leech 1872,” perhaps the biggest fan of embossed paper lace.

Inside of the card on leaf [4].

Leaf [6]. This leaf is one of many with sections or cards cut away, perhaps by Beatrix for a later project.

Card at top of leaf [6], unfortunately, we might never know "What makes a husband like a little dog".

Card at top of leaf [6] from “Aunt Mary 1873.”. Unfortunately, we won’t ever know “Why is a husband like a little dog?”

Leaf [7], “Mama 1873” at top and “MacKenzie 1873” at bottom.

The cards were printed by various English, German, and French sources, many unidentified. The majority, however, bear the recognizable imprint of the publisher Marcus Ward, a British company known for publishing illustrated books and mass producing greeting cards since the 1860’s. Marcus Ward’s Art Director, Thomas Crane, employed popular artists like Kate Greenaway and his son Walter Crane to design and illustrate the company’s greeting cards.

Card on leaf [8], unattributed.

Card on leaf [11], “Grandmama Leech 1874,” perhaps in a bid to win Beatrix’s affections? This is by far the largest card. . .

Card at top of leaf [13], “Papa 1874”.

Card at bottom of leaf [13], “Mr. Goul 1874”.

Card on leaf [14], "MacKenzie 1874", including a

Card on leaf [14], “MacKenzie 1874”, includes altered lines from William Wordsworth’s To the Daisy (1807) reading: “When smitten by the morning ray,/ I see thee rise, alert and gay;/ Then, cheerful flower, my spirits play/ With kindred gladness.”

Card on leaf [26], “Mr. McLaren 1876”.

Card at top of leaf [28], “Dora Hollins 1878.”

Card at bottom of leaf [28], “Papa 1878”.

Card at top of leaf [29], “Bertram 1878”, Walter Bertram Potter’s first card to his older sister Beatrix, when he was 4 years old.

Card at bottom of leaf [29], “Papa”.

Card on leaf [30], “From Mama 1878”.

The last Valentine’s Day card in the album is the real coup de grâce. This unattributed card has it all: bright colors, frills, real lace ties, printed flowers, an intricate daisy border, and inside, a sickeningly sentimental segment of poetry taken from Thomas Hood’s I love Thee! (also unattributed):

Card at top of leaf [40]

Though Valentine’s Day cards have changed a lot in style since the Victorians shared them with friends and family, we have them to thank for the perfecting the mass production of cards and promoting their distribution.

If you still haven’t gotten a card for your sweetie, I hope you can draw some inspiration here for a last-minute tribute.

Happy Valentine’s Day from Cotsen and Beatrix Potter!

We are rerunning this 2015 post about a boy’s Thanksgiving day in 1925 as a reminder that perfect Thanksgivings depends upon your expectations. And Marcus French’s idea of the holiday didn’t have much to do with Norman Rockwell’s!

The connection between football and Thanksgiving seems to go way back…

On November 28,1926, Marcus sent his big sister Eleanor a report on Thanksgiving back home. He thought it was “The best Thanksgiving I ever had” even though “I didn’t get enough turkey.” It wasn’t having the dressing, sides, or pies in the cement house that made the holiday so special that year. The real reason?

“I WENT TO THE MOVIES 2 on THANKSGIVING.”

(The “2” is short for “twice.”)

After the holiday feast the family went to the Strand Theater to see “Rin Tin Tin: The Hero of the Big Snows,” which Marcus said was “dandy.” He’d seen at least one other film starring the German shepherd war hero and star of the silver screen.

After this stirring yarn, in which Rinty saves a child from a vicious black wolf, it was time for something completely different, the “funny picture.” Marcus doesn’t give the title but does mention that it starred Harold Lloyd. According to Marcus, “the goofiest picture I ever saw.” Maybe the “funny picture” Marcus saw was the full-length silent, “For Heaven’s Sake,” the only movie Lloyd released that year. This chase sequence is pretty goofy, by all objective standards. The family went to supper before heading off to the Rialto (the theater’s façade still exists in New Amsterdam) to take in a vaudeville show and another unidentified “goofy picture.” Marcus had more important things to share with Eleanor than details about his third picture show of the day, like his preliminary Christmas list.He promised to send his big sister an updated and expanded list soon instead of asking what SHE might like from Santa. I was able to find pictures of some of the things Marcus coveted. Here’s an advertisement for the major manufacturer of bicycle cyclometers:

The manufacturer’s jingle for this product line was “It’s nice to know how far you go.”

And this might be pretty close to the basketball and the cover on the list:After some perfunctory chat about the weather, Marcus closed with the Pathe News, this time a seasonal story in two frames, written and illustrated by himself: Is this graphic depiction of a turkey’s slaughter and consumption a sign that Marcus was a budding sociopath? Probably not. These contemporary Thanksgiving greeting cards send the message that Americans were a whole lot more matter of fact and a whole lot less squeamish than we are when it comes to meat-eating…

Marcus also wrote about his adventures trick-or-treating and his battles with the algebra teacher. Just as amusing is The Flapper’s Magazette by Miss Vivie Wivie…

So enjoy your Thanksgiving weekend, whether you are finishing off leftovers from the bird or that tasty vegan mushroom gravy…

Holiday greetings from Team Cotsen

Andrea, Dana, Ellen, Ian, Jeff, Marissa, Minjie, Miranda, and Miriam

Cotsen Children’s Library

Princeton University

Category Archives: Archival material

Happy Valentine’s Day: A Scrapbook Made by Helen Potter for her Daughter Beatrix

The Best Thanksgiving Ever: Marcus French Goes to the Movies in 1925