<P> The U.S. Greeting Card Association estimates that approximately 190 million valentines are sent each year in the US . Half of those valentines are given to family members other than husband or wife, usually to children . When the valentine - exchange cards made in school activities are included the figure goes up to 1 billion, and teachers become the people receiving the most valentines . The average valentine's spending has increased every year in the U.S, from $108 a person in 2010 to $131 in 2013 . </P> <P> The rise of Internet popularity at the turn of the millennium is creating new traditions . Millions of people use, every year, digital means of creating and sending Valentine's Day greeting messages such as e-cards, love coupons or printable greeting cards . An estimated 15 million e-valentines were sent in 2010 . Valentine's Day is considered by some to be a Hallmark holiday due to its commercialization . </P> <P> In the modern era, liturgically, the Anglican Church has a service for St. Valentine's Day (the Feast of St. Valentine), which includes the optional rite of the renewal of marriage vows . In 2016, Catholic Bishops of England and Wales established a novena prayer "to support single people seeking a spouse ahead of St Valentine's Day ." </P> <P> Valentine's Day customs developed in early modern England and spread throughout the English - speaking world in the 19th century . In the later 20th and early 21st centuries, these customs spread to other countries, but their effect has been more limited than those of Hallowe'en, or than aspects of Christmas, (such as Santa Claus). </P>

When was the first valentine's card made