Step aside, Halloween—Valentine’s Day is one of the best holidays for eating candy. Sure, you might get a wider variety and higher volume of treats in October, but there are more special sweets that you'll only see on Valentine’s Day. There are heart-shaped boxes of chocolate, of course, but we're here to talk about those iconic conversation hearts.
The National Retail Federation estimates that Americans spent nearly $26 billion on candy last Valentine’s Day. And CandyStore.com reports that conversation hearts were the most popular Valentine’s Day candy in 17 states in 2023. Roughly 13 million pounds of conversation hearts are sold in the six weeks leading up to the holiday. So whether you love them or hate them, these flirtatious hearts are a V-Day staple.
But they’ve had a long, complicated history since hitting the market over 100 years ago. From recipe changes to new acquisitions to nearly being discontinued just a few years ago, it’s been a wild ride for these little hearts.
When Were Conversation Hearts Invented?
The history of conversation hearts dates back to 1847, but their origin story is not what you’d expect. The machine used to make the candies was initially invented to create medicine. Boston-based Pharmacist Oliver Chase developed the lozenge cutter to industrialize the formation of apothecary lozenges.
Chase quickly realized it could also make confections, which is why historians credit the invention as America’s first candy machine. He founded his own candy company, which eventually merged with other brands to form the New England Confectionary Company, also known as Necco. Fun fact: the first candy that Chase’s machine made came to be known as Necco Wafers.
The cheeky phrases came into play in 1866, when the founder’s brother and business partner Daniel Chase designed a letter-stamping system. But the hearts wouldn’t get involved for another 35 years. Instead, the candies were shaped like postcards, horseshoes, and shells over the years.
The significantly larger sweets also include much longer phrases than the ones we know and love. Initial iterations of these candies included phrases like “How long shall I have to wait? Please be considerate” and “Please send a lock of your hair by return mail.”
But around the turn of the 20th century, the candies' shape shifted to a heart. They also became smaller and simpler. And the newly abbreviated romantic phrases aged a lot better than requests for hair. Some of the original conversation heart sayings include Marry Me, Luv U, Be Good, Kiss Me, and Sweet Talk.
How Have Conversation Hearts Changed Over The Years?
Walter Marshall of Necco
As classic as they may be, conversation hearts still adapt to the times. Necco introduced several different sayings throughout the 20th century, with gems like “fax me” and “page me” to reference new technology. Others infused modern (at the time) slang.
“Excuse My Dust,” “I’ll See You Home,” “23 Skidoo,” and “Go Fly A Kite” dominated the early 1900s before being retired. Mid-century sayings like “My Aching Back,” “Hep Cat,” and “You’re Gay” also didn't age well.
Candy executive Walter Marshall spent nearly five decades editing and curating Necco’s lineup of conversation heart phrases. In a 2000 story in The Harvard Crimson, Marshall revealed that he regularly considered suggestions for phrases, from Necco employees, family members, and fan submissions.
The recipe for the conversation hearts was also changed over time. Original hearts tasted like clove and sassafras before becoming the chalky, vaguely fruity flavors that made the candies famous (or infamous, depending on who you ask). But when Necco changed the formula for their conversation hearts in 2010 to have a more intense flavor and softer texture, the public pushed back.
Fans of the classic formula described the new recipe as “mushy tabs of sadness” and “a mess.” The backlash was so intense that Necco went back to the drawing board and came up with another recipe that was similar to the original.
How Did Conversation Hearts Almost Go Extinct?
Necco’s conversation hearts, also branded as Sweethearts, were the first of their kind, but they weren’t the only one. Candy company Brach’s came out with their own version of the wordy treats in the 1950s. Compared to Necco’s hearts, Brach’s recipe was said to have a softer texture and more palatable flavor.
Over the next 70 years, Brach’s brand power grew and eventually eclipsed that of Necco. A Brach’s representative revealed to Food and Wine that they had been outselling the original hearts for a large part of the 2010s.
The fierce rivalry almost came to an end in 2018, when Necco filed for bankruptcy and shut down their factories. Despite declining sales, Americans mourned the loss of this Valentine’s Day symbol (us included). Necco’s candy brands were sold off to different companies, with their beloved conversation hearts passed on to Spangler in 2019.
The new parent company, which also produces Circus Peanuts and Dum Dum lollipops, saved the conversation hearts—but the candies were still out of commission for a while. No conversation hearts were sold in 2019, and then production issues in 2020 meant that year’s shipment contained entirely blank hearts without text.
What Do Conversation Hearts Say Now?
For most of the 21st century, conversation heart sayings had an annual theme. In 2023, for example, they contained pet-themed phrases like “big dog,” “purr fect,” and “beary cute.”
Past years included sayings inspired by song titles, sports, and food. But now, in 2024, they’re outdoing themselves with candies inspired by situationships. Spangler describes their new lineup as perfect for “confused singles everywhere,” with sayings that are purposely “as blurry as your relationship.”
