Archives Center, National Museum of American History

Guide to the Olive Leavister 19th Century Handmade Valentine Collection

Summary

Olive Leavister 19th Century Handmade Valentine Collection
Olive Leavister 19th Century Handmade Valentine Collection: 1830-1880.
Collection ID:
NMAH.AC.0376
Creators:
Lazerowitz, Seymour (dealer)
Leavister, Olive Mae, 1913-1990
Dates:
1830-1880
Languages:
English
.
Physical Description:
0.33 Cubic feet
1 box
Repository:

Scope and Contents

Scope and Contents
Collection consists of one hundred and fifteen handmade valentine cards. It contains examples of American, English, and German cards dating from the 1830s through the 1880s. The cards are in excellent condition with many containing poems and signed by the sender. In addition, there are a few envelopes found among these materials.

Biographical / Historical

Biographical / Historical
Olive Mae Leavister was born on December 16, 1913 in Kansas City, Missouri. She moved to the Washington, DC metropolitan area sometime in the 1930s where she met her husband Charles D. Leavister. She was a charter member of the Maryland Doll Club and frequently gave lectures at doll and antique meetings. In addition, Mrs. Leavister also collected toys, children's books, holiday postcards, sewing objects, candy containers, Christmas ornaments, and valentines. Olive Mae Leavister died on June 20, 1990.

Administration

Author
Vanessa Broussard Simmons
Immediate Source of Acquisition
The collection was donated to the Archives Center, National Museum of American History, on July 11, 1990, by Seymour Lazerowitz. Mr. Lazerowitz purchased the cards from Olive Leavister prior to her death.
Custodial History
Mr. Seymour A. Lazerowitz, a dealer, purchased the collection from Mrs. Leavister. He retained approximately fifteen items and donated the remainder to the Museum in Mrs. Leavister's memory.
Processing Information
Processed by Vanessa Broussard-Simmons, archivist, 1991.

Digital Content

Olive Leavister 19th Century Handmade Valentine Collection
Olive Leavister 19th Century Handmade Valentine Collection: 1830-1880.
See all digital content in NMAH.AC.0376

Using the Collection

Preferred Citation
Olive Leavister 19th Century Handmade Valentine Collection, 1830s-1880s, Archives Center, National Museum of American History. Gift of Seymour A. Lazerowitz in honor of Olive Leavister.
Conditions Governing Access
Collection is open for research.
Conditions Governing Use
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.

Keywords

Keywords table of terms and types.
Keyword Terms Keyword Types
Children Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Greeting cards -- 1830-1880 Genre Form Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Holidays -- 1830-1880 Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Saint Valentine's Day -- 1830-1880 Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Valentines -- 1830-1880 -- England Genre Form Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Valentines -- 1830-1880 -- Germany Genre Form Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Valentines -- 1830-1880 -- U.S. Genre Form Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Archives Center, National Museum of American History
P.O. Box 37012
Suite 1100, MRC 601
Washington, D.C. 20013-7012
archivescenter@si.edu