Valentine’s Games

Published June 04, 2019 • Updated January 30, 2022

Valentine & Sons Ltd, Dundee & London, were greeting card and book publishers who also produced playing cards and party games during the early 20th century.

Valentine & Sons Ltd, Dundee & London, were greeting card manufacturers who also sold photographs and postcards, plus a range of small books of photographic views of England and Scotland (dated between 1895 and 1910). They also published other books, many with illustrations for children, and playing cards and party games during the early 20th century. Well known amongst playing card collectors for their packs of scenic playing cards for Webb’s, Isle of Man, they also produced a small fortune-telling pack and a patience pack in around 1900. At least five card games are known (shown below):

The Muddled Menagerie

The Muddled Menagerie, c.1900 see more →

Freddie the Fox

Above: “Freddy the Fox” published by Valentine’s Games, c.1910 see more →

Spy

Above: “Spy” published by Valentine’s Games, c.1915 see more →

Cardomino

55 cards in telescopic box. See the Rules►

Above: Valentine’s Cardomino, c.1910.

Sister Susie Snap

At least two editions of this game are known, probably from around first world war times see more →

Above: Sister Susie Snap, c.1915. all above images courtesy Rex Pitts.

The Soldier’s Compendium

Above: The Soldier’s Compendium produced by Valentine’s Games, c.1915. Images courtesy Ken Lodge.

References & Credits

Very informative site about Valentine Books►

Photographic archive of J Valentine and Co., Dundee: here►

Lodge, Ken: The Standard English Pattern (second revised and enlarged edition), Bungay, Suffolk, 2010, pp.143-44.

Ken Lodge’s Blog: playing cards for Webb’s, Isle of Man and more info here►

Thanks to Rex Pitts for kindly supplying scans from his collection and to Ken Lodge for additional research.

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By Rex Pitts (1940-2021)

Member since January 30, 2009

View Articles Contact Rex Pitts (1940-2021)

Rex's main interest was in card games, because, he said, they were cheap and easy to get hold of in his early days of collecting. He is well known for his extensive knowledge of Pepys games and his book is on the bookshelves of many.

His other interest was non-standard playing cards. He also had collections of sheet music, music CDs, models of London buses, London Transport timetables and maps and other objects that intrigued him.

Rex had a chequered career at school. He was expelled twice, on one occasion for smoking! Despite this he trained as a radio engineer and worked for the BBC in the World Service.

Later he moved into sales and worked for a firm that made all kinds of packaging, a job he enjoyed until his retirement. He became an expert on boxes and would always investigate those that held his cards. He could always recognize a box made for Pepys, which were the same as those of Alf Cooke’s Universal Playing Card Company, who printed the card games. This interest changed into an ability to make and mend boxes, which he did with great dexterity. He loved this kind of handicraft work.

His dexterity of hand and eye soon led to his making card games of his own design. He spent hours and hours carefully cutting them out and colouring them by hand.

2018

Playing Cards

Collecting

Tarot & Cartomancy