Victorian Leisure: Games

Special Collections has just digitized a set of books of games from Victorian England. From charades and riddles to group party games and homemade toys, these books illustrate the types of home-based entertainment which were popular among children and adults in the 19th century. Find and try a game your ancestor might have played, or at least learn what characters from your favorite 19th century English or American novel were doing when they were playing games like “forfeits.” You can find the scanned items at the library’s Victorian Collection on the Internet Archive.