Valentine’s Day Trivia

Opinions differ as to who was the original Valentine, but the most popular theory is that he was a clergyman who was executed for secretly marrying couples in ancient Rome, according information from the U.S. Census Bureau. In A.D. 496, Pope Gelasius I declared Feb. 14 as Valentine Day, while Esther Howland, a native of Massachusetts, is given credit for selling the first mass-produced valentine cards in the 1840s. Some other bits of trivia from the Census folks:

One Sweet Holiday

• 1,177 — Number of U.S. manufacturing establishments that produced chocolate and cocoa products in 2009, employing 34,252 people. California led the nation in the number of chocolate and cocoa manufacturing establishments with 135, followed by Pennsylvania, 111. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, County Business Patterns: 2009, NAICS code (31132) and (31133)
• 409 — Number of U.S. establishments that manufactured non-chocolate confectionary products in 2009, employing 16,974 people. California also led the nation in this category with 45 establishments. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, County Business Patterns: 2009, NAICS code (31134)
• $12.6 billion — Total value of shipments in 2009 for firms producing chocolate and cocoa products, compared with $7.4 billion for non-chocolate confectionery product manufacturing. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, 2009 Annual Survey of Manufactures
• 3,386 — Number of confectionery and nut stores in the United States in 2009. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, County Business Patterns, NAICS code (445292)
• 24.7 pounds — Per capita consumption of candy by Americans in 2010. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Current Industrial Reports, Confectionery: 2010

Peddling Petals

• $375 million — The combined wholesale value of domestically produced cut flowers in 2010 for all flower-producing operations with $100,000 or more in sales. Among states, California was the leading producer, alone accounting for more than three-quarters of this amount ($286 million). Source: USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service (link and PDF)
• $17 million — The combined wholesale value of domestically produced cut roses in 2010 for all operations with $100,000 or more in sales. Source: USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service (link and PDF)
• 17,124 — The number of florists nationwide in 2009, employing 75,855 people at the time. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, County Business Patterns, NAICS code (453110)

Diamonds are a Girl's ...

24,973 — Number of jewelry stores in the United States in 2009. Jewelry stores offer engagement, wedding and other rings to couples of all ages. In February 2011, these stores sold $2.27 billion in merchandise. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, County Business Patterns, NAICS code (448310) and Monthly Retail Trade and Food Services. The merchandise at these locations could well have been produced at one of the nation’s 1,547 jewelry manufacturing establishments.Source: U.S. Census Bureau, County Business Patterns, NAICS code (339911)

Love and Marriage

• 2.1 million — The number of marriages in the United States in 2009. That breaks down to nearly 5,800 a day. Source: National Center for Health Statistics, (here and here)
• 108,150 — The number of marriages performed in Nevada during 2009. So many couples tie the knot in the Silver State that it ranked fifth nationally in marriages, even though its total population that year among states was 35th. California ranked first in marriages. Source: National Center for Health Statistics (here and here) and population estimates 
• 28.7 and 26.5 years — Median age at first marriage in 2011 for men and women, respectively. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Families and Living Arrangements: 2011, Table MS-2 
• 53.1 percent — The overall percentage of adults who reported being married. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Families and Living Arrangements: 2011, Table A1 
• 69 percent — Percentage of people 15 and older in 2011 who had been married at some point in their lives, past or present. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Families and Living Arrangements: 2011, Table A1
• 74.5 percent — Among women who married for the first time between 1990 and 1994, the percentage who marked their 10th anniversary. This compares with 83 percent of women who married for the first time between 1960 and 1964. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Number, Timing, and Duration of Marriages and Divorces: 2009, Table 4
• 6.2 percent — As of 2009, the percentage of currently married women who had been married for at least 50 years. A little more than half of currently married women had been married for at least 15 years. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Number, Timing, and Duration of Marriages and Divorces: 2009, Table 9

Wookin' Per Nub

393 — The number of dating service establishments nationwide as of 2007. These establishments, which include Internet dating services, employed 3,125 people and pulled in $928 million in revenue. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, 2007 Economic Census

Home Sweet Home

The following are actual places in the United States:

• Darling, MN
• Love County, OK
• Love Valley, NC
• Lovejoy, GA
• Lovelady, TX
• Loveland, CO, OK and OH
• Loveland Park, OH
• Lovelock, NV
• Loves Park, IL
• Loving, NM
• Loving County, TX
• Lovington, IL and NM
• Romeo, CO and MI
• Romeoville, IL
• Rose City, MI and TX
• South Heart, ND
• Valentine, NE and TX

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American FactFinder

Once, Twice, Three Times a Marriage

• 19 percent — Percentage of people married twice as of 2010. Five percent have married three or more times. By comparison, 75 percent of people who have ever been married have made only one trip down the aisle. Source: 2010 American Community Survey
• 8 — Median length, in years, of first marriages that ended in divorce. Source: Number, Timing, and Duration of Marriages and Divorces: 2009, Table 8
• 3.8 and 3.7 — Median time in years between divorce and second marriage for men and women, respectively. Source: Number, Timing, and Duration of Marriages and Divorces: 2009, Table 8
• 9 percent and 8 percent — Among people 15 and older in 2009, the percentage of men and women, respectively, who had married twice and were still married. Source for the data in this section, unless otherwise noted: Number, Timing, and Duration of Marriages and Divorces: 2009