Garis, Howard Roger, 1873-1962

Howard R. Garis (1873-1962) was an American author of children's books, best known for his Uncle Wiggily stories.

Born April 25, 1873, in Binghamton, New York, the son of Simeon H. and Ellen A. Kimball Garis, he graduated from Binghamton High School and attended Stevens Institute of Technology at Hoboken, New Jersey. From 1896 to 1947, Mr. Garis was a reporter and special writer for the Newark, New Jersey Evening News . His Uncle Wiggily stories first appeared in the News in 1910, were syndicated in 1915, and continued to be published for more than forty years, at one time appearing in one hundred newspapers.

In addition to 35 volumes of Uncle Wiggily stories, Mr. Garis wrote numerous other children's books under his own name as well as under several "house pseudonyms" used by the Stratemeyer Syndicate for its children's series. Among the series Garis contributed to are Tom Swift (as Victor Appleton), the Bobbsey Twins (as Laura Lee Hope), the Motor Boys (as Clarence Young), the Great Marvel series and books featuring Baseball Joe (as Lester Chadwick), and the Camp Fire Girls (as Marion Davidson). He also wrote With Force of Arms (1902), four volumes of the Rocket Riders series, and seven volumes of the Teddy series. His wife, Lilian McNamara Garis, whom he married in 1900, collaborated on several of his books including the Bobbsey Twins volumes.

In addition to his writing, Mr. Garis invented a number of board games, including the Uncle Wiggily Game, Mr. Doodle's Dog Game, Witch Magic Game, Get Well Game, and (with his son Roger) the 100 Red Convertibles Game.

From the guide to the Howard R. Garis Papers, 1910-1964., (Special Collections Research Center, Syracuse University Libraries)