Victorian children enjoyed stilt walking as both entertainment and skill-building. Wooden stilts required strength, balance, and concentration. Children performed races, obstacle courses, and tricks on stilts, often drawing crowds in marketplaces or village streets. The activity enhanced physical fitness, spatial awareness, and confidence. Festivals sometimes featured stilt competitions, blending leisure with performance. Parents encouraged stilt walking as exercise, discipline, and display of dexterity. Stilts were often handmade, reflecting local craftsmanship. The activity was both playful and socially visible, reinforcing peer recognition and local pride.
Stilt walking enhanced balance, confidence, and public performance skills.
It shows how play doubled as both recreation and social display.
Did you know some Victorian fairs awarded ribbons or small prizes for best stilt-walking tricks?
[History Extra, historyextra.com]