Howard Garis

American children's novelist and journalist.

• Born: April 25, 1873
• Birthplace: Binghamton, New York
• Died: November 6, 1962
• Place of death: Amherst, Massachusetts

Biography

Howard Roger Garis was born in 1873 in Binghamton, New York, the son of railroad telegrapher Simeon Garis and Ellen A. Kimball. As a child, he and his family moved from place to place because of the nature of his father’s job, and his education was interrupted. His father taught him to read boxcars and he especially liked reading the stories of Hans Christian Andersen and the tales of the Arabian Nights. Garis attended the Stevens Institute of Technology in Hoboken, New Jersey, and married Lillian C. McNamara in 1900, with whom he had two children.

When he was a teenager, Garis wrote his first novel about a young man who is spurned by a young girl; the story was based upon a similar incident in his life. Harper’s Magazine rejected the four-hundred-page manuscript. Garis’s practical father forced him to study mechanical engineering, but at nineteen Garis left school and began to write magazine articles. After initial rejection, he eventually sold his first story to Happenchance, earning about $9 for his work.

After his father died in 1984, Garis was forced to support his family. He began working at The Sunnyside, an odd name for an undertakers’ magazine. He went through a series of similar jobs until he began writing for Town Talk, a publication owned by the Newark Evening News. In 1896, he began a job as a cub reporter for the Newark Evening News and remained there for more than fifty years. He also began selling stories to Companion, Argosy, and other magazines.

His first published novel, With Force and Arms: A Tale of Love and Salem Witchcraft, appeared in 1902, but it was not successful. His first children’s book, Isle of Black Fire, was published in 1904 and determined the course of his life. In 1905, he began working for the Stratemeyer Syndicate as a writer for contracted children’s books. Under the pseudonym Clarence Young, he wrote the very successful Motor Boys series which focused on the newly invented automobile. He also developed the popular character of Tom Swift, a young inventor, and under the name Victor Appleton he wrote a series of Swift books which sold in the tens of thousands. Sadly, he earned no royalties from this series, only a mere $125 per book.

Garis and his wife also wrote some of the Bobbsey Twins books, and in 1910 he hit pay dirt with his creation of Uncle Wiggily, his most famous character. He wrote six stories about Uncle Wiggily, a rabbit with a crutch and a silk top hat, every week for more than fifty years. In all, Garis produced more than seven hundred books in the juvenile fiction genre, many of which were written under pseudonyms, and more than fifteen thousand stories.

Author Works

Children's Literature:

The White Crystals, 1904 (illustrated by Bertha Corson Day)

Isle of Black Fire, 1904

The Motor Boys Overland, 1906

The Motor Boys in Mexico, 1906

The Motor Boys: Or, Chums through Thick and Thin, 1906

Larry Dexter, Reporter, 1907

From Office Boy to Reporter, 1907

The Motor Boys across the Plains, 1907

Jack Ranger's Schooldays, 1907

The Motor Boys on the Atlantic, 1908

Jack Ranger's Western Trip, 1908

Jack Ranger's School Victories, 1908

The Motor Boys Afloat, 1908

Larry Dexter's Great Search, 1909

Dick Hamilton's Fortune, 1909

The Motor Boys in Strange Waters, 1909

The Motor Boys on the Pacific, 1909

Jack Ranger's Ocean Cruise, 1909

Dick Hamilton's Cadet Days, 1910

Those Smith Boys: Or, The Mystery of the Thumbless Man, 1910

Sammie and Susie Littletail, 1910

Johnnie and Billie Bushytail, 1910 (illustrated by Louis Wisa)

Tom Swift and His Motor Cycle, 1910 (also known as Fun and Adventure on the Road)

Tom Swift and His Electric Runabout, 1910 (also known as The Speediest Car on the Road)

Tom Swift and His Submarine Boat, 1910 (also known as Under the Ocean for Sunken Treasure)

Tom Swift and His Airship, 1910 (also known as The Stirring Cruise of the Red Cloud)

Tom Swift and His Motor Boat, 1910 (also known as The Rivals of Lake Carlopa)

Tom Swift and His Sky Racer, 1910 (also known as The Quickest Flight on Record)

Jack Ranger's Gun Club, 1910

The Motor Boys in the Clouds, 1910

Dick Hamilton's Steam Yacht, 1911

Tom Swift and His Electric Rifle, 1911 (also known as Daring Adventures in Elephant Island)

Tom Swift among the Diamond Makers, 1911 (also known as The Secret of Phantom Mountain)

Tom Swift in the Caves of Ice, 1911 (also known as The Wreck of the Airship)

Tom Swift and His Wireless Message, 1911 (also known as The Castaways of Earthquake Island)

The Motor Boys over the Rockies, 1911

The Motor Boys over the Ocean, 1911

Jack Ranger's Treasure Box, 1911

Larry Dexter and the Stolen Boy, 1912

Three Little Trippertrots on Their Travels, 1912

Dick Hamilton's Football Team, 1912

Larry Dexter and the Bank Mystery, 1912

The Island Boys: Or, Fun and Adventures on Lake Modok, 1912

Lulu, Alice, and Jimmie Wibblewobble, 1912 (illustrated by Wisa)

Those Smith Boys on the Diamond, 1912

Jackie and Peetie Bow Wow, 1912 (illustrated by Wisa)

Three Little Trippertrots, 1912

Tom Swift and His Wizard Camera, 1912 (also known as Thrilling Adventures while Taking Moving Pictures)

Tom Swift in Captivity, 1912 (also known as A Daring Escape by Airship)

Tom Swift and His Air Glider, 1912 (also known as Seeking the Platinum Treasure)

Tom Swift in the City of Gold, 1912 (also known as Marvelous Adventures Underground)

Tom Swift and His Great Search Light, 1912 (also known as On the Border for Uncle Sam)

Uncle Wiggily's Adventures, 1912 (illustrated by Wisa)

The Motor Boys after a Fortune, 1912

The Motor Boys on the Wing, 1912

The Racer Boys at Boarding School, 1912

The Racer Boys to the Rescue, 1912

The Racer Boys: Or, The Mystery of the Wreck, 1912

Buddy and Brighteyes Pigg, 1913 (illustrated by Wisa)

Tom Swift and His Giant Cannon, 1913 (also known as The Longest Shots on Record)

The Motor Boys on the Border, 1913

The Racer Boys on the Prairies, 1913

The Camp Fire Girls on the Ice, 1913

The Camp Fire Girls: Or, The Secret of an Old Mill, 1913

Tom Swift and His Photo Telephone, 1914 (also known as The Picture That Saved a Fortune)

The Motor Boys under the Sea, 1914

Bully and Bawly No-Tail, 1915 (illustrated by Wisa)

Tom Swift and His Aerial Warship, 1915 (also known as The Naval Terror of the Seas)

Uncle Wiggily Longears, 1915 (illustrated by Edward Bloomfield)

The Motor Boys on Road and River, 1915

Daddy Takes Us Hunting Birds, 1916 (illustrated by Eva Dean)

Tom Swift and His Big Tunnel, 1916 (also known as The Hidden City of the Andes)

Uncle Wiggily and Mother Goose, 1916 (illustrated by Bloomfield)

The Motor Boys as Freshmen, 1916

Jacko and Jumbo Kinkytail, 1917 (illustrated by Wisa)

The Venture Boys Afloat: Or, The Wreck of the Fausta, 1917 (illustrated by Perc E. Cowen)

Tom Swift in the Land of Wonders, 1917 (also known as The Underground Search for the Idol of Gold)

Uncle Wiggily in the Woods, 1917 (illustrated by Wisa)

The Venture Boys in Camp: Or, The Mystery of Kettle Hill, 1918

Tufto the Clown, 1918

The Curlytops Snowed In, 1918 (illustrated by Julia Greene)

The Curlytops on Star Island, 1918 (illustrated by Greene)

The Curlytops at Uncle Frank's Ranch, 1918 (illustrated by Greene)

Tom Swift and His War Tank, 1918 (also known as Doing His Bit for Uncle Sam)

Uncle Wiggily on the Farm, 1918 (illustrated by Elmer Rache)

Uncle Wiggily and Alice in Wonderland, 1918 (illustrated by Bloomfield)

Toodle and Noodle Flat-Tail, the Jolly Beaver Boys, 1919 (illustrated by Wisa)

Tom Swift and His Air Scout, 1919 (also known as Uncle Sam's Mastery of the Sky)

The Motor Boys on the Firing Line, 1919

Rick and Ruddy, the Story of a Boy and His Dog, 1920

Tom Swift and His Undersea Search, 1920 (also known as The Treasure on the Floor of the Atlantic)

Uncle Wiggily and Baby Bunty, 1920 (illustrated by Wisa)

Uncle Wiggily's Rheumatism, 1920 (illustrated by Wisa)

Rick and Ruddy in Camp, 1921 (illustrated by Milo Winter)

The Curlytops and Their Pets, 1921

Tom Swift among the Fire Fighters, 1921 (also known as Battling with Flames in the Air)

Rick and Ruddy Afloat, 1922 (illustrated by W. B. King)

The Curlytops and Their Playmates, 1922 (illustrated by Greene)

Tom Swift and His Electric Locomotive, 1922 (also known as Two Miles a Minute on the Rails)

Uncle Wiggily: Indian Hunter, 1922 (illustrated by Lang Campbell)

Uncle Wiggily's Ice Cream Party, 1922 (illustrated by Campbell)

Uncle Wiggily's Woodland Games, 1922 (illustrated by Campbell)

Uncle Wiggily's Silk Hat, 1922 (illustrated by Campbell)

Uncle Wiggily's June Bug Friends, 1922 (illustrated by Campbell)

Rick and Ruddy Out West, 1923

The Curlytops in the Woods, 1923 (illustrated by Greene)

Tom Swift and His Flying Boat, 1923 (also known as Castaways of the Giant Iceberg)

Rick and Ruddy on the Trail, 1924 (illustrated by King)

Two Wild Cherries in the Woods: Or, How Dick and Janet Caught the Bear, 1924 (illustrated by John M. Foster)

Two Wild Cherries in the Country: Or, How Dick and Janet Saved the Mill, 1924 (illustrated by Foster)

Two Wild Cherries: Or, How Dick and Janet Lost Something, 1924 (illustrated by Foster)

The Curlytops at Sunset Beach, 1924 (illustrated by Greene)

Tom Swift and His Great Oil Gusher, 1924 (also known as The Treasure of Goby Farm)

The Adventures of Uncle Wiggily, the Bunny Rabbit Gentleman with the Twinkling Pink Nose, 1924 (illustrated by Campbell)

Uncle Wiggily's Painting Play, 1924 (illustrated by Campbell)

Uncle Wiggily's Painting Fun, 1924 (illustrated by Campbell)

Uncle Wiggily Goes Swimming, 1924 (illustrated by Campbell)

Uncle Wiggily on Roller Skates, 1924 (illustrated by Campbell)

Uncle Wiggily at the Beach, 1924 (illustrated by Campbell)

Uncle Wiggily on the Flying Rug, 1924 (illustrated by Campbell)

Uncle Wiggily's Funny Auto, 1924 (illustrated by Campbell)

Uncle Wiggily and the Pirates, 1924 (illustrated by Campbell)

The Motor Boys on Thunder Mountain, 1924

The Curlytops Touring Around, 1925

Tom Swift and His Chest of Secrets, 1925 (also known as Tracing the Stolen Inventions)

The Adventures of the Sailing Sofa, 1926

Tom Cardiff's Circus, 1926 (illustrated by King)

Tom Swift and His Airline Express, 1926 (also known as From Ocean to Ocean by Daylight)

Tam of the Fire Cave, 1927

Tom Cardiff in the Big Top, 1927 (illustrated by King)

Tom Swift Circling the Globe, 1927 (also known as The Daring Cruise of the Air Monarch)

The Uncle Wiggily Book, 1927 (illustrated by Campbell)

Uncle Wiggily's Water-Spout, 1927 (illustrated by Campbell)

The Curlytops Growing Up, 1928 (illustrated by Greene)

Tom Swift and His Talking Pictures, 1928 (also known as The Greatest Invention on Record)

Chad of Knob Hill, 1929 (illustrated by Paul Martin)

Buddy and His Winter Fun, 1929

Buddy on the Farm, 1929

Buddy in School, 1929

Tom Swift and His House On Wheels, 1929 (also known as A Trip around the Mountain of Mystery)

Uncle Wiggily's Wash Tub Ship, 1929 (illustrated by Campbell)

Uncle Wiggily's Ice Boat, 1929 (illustrated by Campbell)

Uncle Wiggily's Make Believe Tarts, 1929 (illustrated by Campbell)

Uncle Wiggily's Rolling Hoop, 1929 (illustrated by Campbell)

Uncle Wiggily's Squirt Gun, 1929 (illustrated by Campbell)

Uncle Wiggily and the Alligator, 1929 (illustrated by William Weaver)

The Face in the Dismal Cavern, 1930

The Secret of Lost River, 1930

The Gypsy Camp, 1930

Mystery Boys in Ghost Canyon, 1930 (illustrated by H. G. Nichols)

The Mystery of the Brass Bound Box, 1930

Saving the Old Mill, 1930

Swept from the Storm, 1930

On the Showman's Trail, 1930

The Bear Hunt, 1930

Don Sturdy in the Land of Giants, 1930 (as Victor Appleton; also known as Captives of the Savage Patagonians)

Shipwrecked on Christmas Island, 1930

Buddy and His Chum, 1930

Buddy at Rainbow Lake, 1930

Tom Swift and His Big Dirigible, 1930 (also known as Adventures over the Forest of Fire)

Uncle Wiggily's Bungalow, 1930

Mystery Boys at Round Lake, 1931 (illustrated by Nichols)

Buddy and His Flying Balloon, 1931

Buddy at Pine Beach, 1931

The Curlytops at Happy House, 1931

Tom Swift and His Sky Train, 1931 (also known as Overland through the Clouds)

Uncle Wiggily's Icicle Spear, 1931 (illustrated by Campbell)

Uncle Wiggily's Jumping Boots, 1931 (illustrated by Campbell)

Uncle Wiggily's Travels, 1931 (illustrated by Wisa)

Uncle Wiggily's Airship, 1931 (illustrated by Wisa)

Buddy on Mystery Mountain, 1932

The Curlytops at the Circus, 1932

Tom Swift and His Giant Magnet, 1932 (also known as Bringing Up the Lost Submarine)

Rocket Riders across the Ice, 1933

Rocket Riders in Stormy Seas, 1933

Rocket Riders over the Desert, 1933

Buddy on Floating Island, 1933

Uncle Wiggily's Picnic Party, 1933

Rocket Riders in the Air, 1934

Buddy and the Secret Cave, 1934

Buddy and His Cowboy Pal, 1935

Teddy and the Mystery Dog, 1936

Teddy and the Mystery Monkey, 1936

Buddy and the Indian Chief, 1936

Uncle Wiggily's Holidays, 1936 (illustrated by Campbell)

Uncle Wiggily's Auto Sled, 1936 (illustrated by Campbell)

Uncle Wiggily's Visit to the Farm, 1936 (illustrated by Campbell)

Teddy and the Mystery Cat, 1937

Buddy and the Arrow Club, 1937

Uncle Wiggily's Surprises, 1937

Teddy and the Mystery Parrot, 1938

Buddy at Lost River, 1938

Teddy and the Mystery Pony, 1939

Buddy on the Trail, 1939

Uncle Wiggily's Automobile, 1939 (illustrated by Rache)

Teddy and the Mystery Deer, 1940

Buddy in Deep Valley, 1940

Uncle Wiggily's Picture Book, 1940 (illustrated by Campbell)

Uncle Wiggily in the Country, 1940 (illustrated by Rache)

Teddy and the Mystery Goat, 1941

Buddy at Red Gate, 1941

Buddy in Dragon Swamp, 1942

Uncle Wiggily and the Littletails, 1942 (illustrated by Rache)

Buddy's Victory Club, 1943

Buddy and the G-Man Mystery, 1944

Buddy and His Fresh-Air Camp, 1947

Uncle Wiggily's Happy Days, 1947 (illustrated by George Carlson)

Uncle Wiggily and Jackie and Peetie Bow Wow, 1952

Uncle Wiggily and His Friends, 1955

Long Fiction:

With Force and Arms: A Tale of Love and Salem Witchcraft, 1902

The King of Unadilla: Stories of Court Secrets Concerning His Majesty, 1903

Bibliography

Garis, Leslie. The House of Happy Endings. Farrar, Staus and Giroux, 2007. A family memoir by Garis's granddaughter, daughter of Roger Garis, about growing up with her parents and grandparents in Amherst, Massachusetts, and her father's desperate struggles to live up to his parents' reputation.

Garis, Roger. My Father Was Uncle Wiggily. McGraw-Hill, 1966. A biography by Garis's son, Roger.

"Howard R. Garis Papers." Syracuse University Libraries, https://library.syr.edu/digital/guides/g/garis‗hr.htm. Accessed 29 June 2017. A short bio and description of Garis's papers held by Syracuse University, including correspondence, memorabilia, writings, and illustrations.

Merriman, C. D. "Victor Appleton." The Literature Network, Jalic, 2006, http://www.online-literature.com/victor-appleton/. Accessed 29 June 2017. Brief online biography of Garis.