The Roller Skate Craze

As if bicycles weren’t enough of a menace, roller skates also became popular at the turn of the twentieth century. The first roller skates had been invented in the 1700s, but in 1863 James Plimpton invented the four-wheeled skate that allowed skaters to turn corners. By the 1880s roller skates were being mass-produced. In 1907, William N. Selig filmed a variety of people going about their daily lives, all wearing roller skates.


In this video, the cameraman photographed many different people in varied walks of life all of whom are wearing roller skates.


Source Citation: 

The Roller Skate Craze. Directed by William N. Selig. August 09, 1907. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u4WzjTwgo_I