WWI Love Letters Offer Timeless Valentine's Day Writing Tips

Borrow wisdom from century-old wartime correspondence to craft a heartfelt message this February 14th.

Published on Feb. 12, 2026

Got story updates? Submit your updates here. ›

As Valentine's Day approaches, the National WWI Museum and Memorial's collection of wartime love letters offers a trove of timeless advice for crafting a meaningful message. Curator Lora Vogt shares five tips gleaned from these century-old correspondences, including using terms of endearment, embracing poetry, flirting playfully, incorporating everyday details, and making it personal with photos or shared memories.

Why it matters

These WWI-era love letters provide a unique window into the intimate lives of couples separated by global conflict, reminding us that even in times of great upheaval, the universal human need for connection and love endures. By drawing inspiration from these heartfelt missives, modern writers can create Valentine's Day messages that truly capture the depth of their feelings.

The details

The National WWI Museum and Memorial's collection features letters exchanged between servicemen and women and their loved ones, some of which would go on to last a lifetime while others were tragically cut short. Curator Lora Vogt highlights several examples that showcase the writers' creativity and vulnerability, from a systemist in Siberia using multiple terms of endearment, to a dentist in Russia filling his letters with poetic imagery, to a playful flirtation between a corporal and his sweetheart.

  • The National WWI Museum and Memorial's collection of wartime love letters dates back more than a century to World War I.

The players

Lora Vogt

Curator and vice president of education and interpretation at the National WWI Museum and Memorial.

Dr. Charles Glen Irons

A dentist serving in Russia who wrote nearly every day to his wife and daughter in Chicago, filling his letters with emotion and poetic imagery.

Corporal Reid Disman Fields

A young soldier who exchanged flirtatious letters with his sweetheart, Clara Wrasse.

Clara Wrasse

The sweetheart of Corporal Reid Disman Fields, with whom she exchanged playful, flirtatious letters.

Got photos? Submit your photos here. ›

What they’re saying

“With oceans and oceans of love and a kiss on each wave.”

— Dr. Charles Glen Irons, Dentist serving in Russia (National WWI Museum and Memorial)

“How I would like to be with you on this day, [t]he day on which seven years ago I was made one of the happiest men alive....May God shorten the days as much as possible until the time when I can clasp you in my arms again.”

— Dr. Charles Glen Irons, Dentist serving in Russia (National WWI Museum and Memorial)

“I think to hear one say that they love you and really mean it is one of the sweetest messages that could be spoken and unlike other things does not grow old with constant repetition, honey dear I love you more than anything else in the world. In fact, I worship you I have never fully appreciated you and your wonderful qualities in the past, but with God's permission, I am going to try and make up for past neglect.”

— Dr. Charles Glen Irons, Dentist serving in Russia (National WWI Museum and Memorial)

“No kid you [didn't] ask me too many questions, of course you know what I would say if you did. Ha! I guess I haven't done anything to ruin my reputation though. Ha! Ha! Get that? Puzzle, where is the reputation? You know what you always told me.”

— Corporal Reid Disman Fields (National WWI Museum and Memorial)

“P. S. I must ask you what do you mean you know nothing about the other kind of a kiss but you have a great imagination? Don't forget to answer. So long.”

— Clara Wrasse (National WWI Museum and Memorial)

The takeaway

These century-old love letters from the National WWI Museum and Memorial's collection offer a timeless trove of wisdom for crafting heartfelt Valentine's Day messages, reminding us that even amidst global upheaval, the universal human need for connection and love endures.