Uncle Sam’s “crazes” past and present
Subject(s): Cycling, Fads, Healers, Hobbyhorses, Paderewski, Ignace Jan, 1860-1941, Pleasonton, A. J. (Augustus James), 1808-1894, Prohibition, Puzzles, Roller skating, Schlatter, Francis, 1856-1896?, Silver question, Uncle Sam (Symbolic character)
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This vignette cartoon depicts, at center, the current “craze” for “Free Silver,” showing Uncle Sam riding a silver rocking horse. Surrounding vignettes show him participating in several fads “Past and Present,” such as the “Blue Glass Craze” after A. J. Pleasonton’s discovery of the properties of blue light; the “Prohibition Crusade”; the “Roller-Skating Craze”; a puzzle craze in the 1880s including the “Fifteen Puzzle,” with 15 sliding blocks in a square box, and “Pigs in Clover,” a “rolling-ball dexterity puzzle”; the “Paderewski Craze” around 1891 for piano music by Ignace J. Paderewski; the cycling craze, which has not yet ended; and the “Schlatter Craze,” which did come to an end with the disappearance and death of faith healer Francis Schlatter.
Collection
Library of Congress Prints and Photographs
Creation Date
1896-07-29
Creator(s)
Opper, Frederick Burr, 1857-1937
Language
English
Period
NYC Police Commissioner (May 1895-March 1897)
Repository
Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division
Page Count
1
Record Type
Image
Resource Type
Rights
These images are presented through a cooperative effort between the Library of Congress and Dickinson State University. No known restrictions on publication.
Citation
Cite this Record
Chicago:
Uncle Sam’s “crazes” past and present. [July 29, 1896]. Library of Congress Prints and Photographs.
https://www.theodorerooseveltcenter.org/digital-library/o289231. Theodore Roosevelt Digital Library. Dickinson State University.
MLA:
Opper, Frederick Burr, 1857-1937. Uncle Sam’s “crazes” past and present. [29 Jul. 1896]. Image.
Library of Congress Prints and Photographs. Theodore Roosevelt Digital Library. Dickinson State University. February 5, 2026. https://www.theodorerooseveltcenter.org/digital-library/o289231.
APA:
Opper, Frederick Burr, 1857-1937., [1896, July 29]. Uncle Sam’s “crazes” past and present.
Library of Congress Prints and Photographs. Theodore Roosevelt Digital Library. Dickinson State University.
Retrieved from https://www.theodorerooseveltcenter.org/digital-library/o289231.
Cite this Collection
Chicago:
Library of Congress Prints and Photographs. https://www.theodorerooseveltcenter.org/collection/library-of-congress-prints-and-photographs. Theodore Roosevelt Digital Library. Dickinson State University.
MLA:
Library of Congress Prints and Photographs. Theodore Roosevelt Digital Library. Dickinson State University. February 5, 2026. https://www.theodorerooseveltcenter.org/collection/library-of-congress-prints-and-photographs.
APA:
Library of Congress Prints and Photographs. Theodore Roosevelt Digital Library. Dickinson State University. Retrieved from https://www.theodorerooseveltcenter.org/collection/library-of-congress-prints-and-photographs.
