Cold weather brought with it a host of outdoor activities. Ice-skating was enjoyed by men and women, and Victorian illustrations often show women being pushed about the ice in little sledges or chariots. Tobogans came to England from America, while in America "ice-boating" was a popular recreation. In London, occasionally the winters got cold enough to cause the Thames to freeze sufficiently for a "frost fair."

Curling (Illustrated London Almanack, 1845)

Recreations on the Ice (Illustrated London Almanack, 1853)

Skating for Ladies (Godey's, 1863)

Why ladies ought to skate, and how they can go about it.

Skating for Ladies (Peterson's Magazine, 1865)

Skating in Halifax, Nova Scotia (Leisure Hour, 1868)

Healthful Recreations: Skating (Girl's Own Paper, 1880)

How to skate, tend your skates - and skate safely in Victorian dress!

The Danish Skate-Sail (Century Magazine, 1882A)

Outdoor Games (Collier's Cyclopedia, 1882)

Includes baseball, cricket, croquet, football, archery and skating.

The Games and Amusements of the Month: December (Little Folks, 1883)

Skating, sliding, curling, snowballing, and some indoor games.

Ice-Boating in America, by F. Foster Long (Cassell's Family Magazine, 1883)

Tobogans and Toboganing, by Alfred Harmsworth (Girl's Own Paper, 1883)

Winter Entertainments in Villages, by Gentianella (Girl's Own Paper, 1883)

Canada as a Winter Resort, by W. George Beers (Century Magazine, 1885A)

A look at a variety of Canadian winter sports, including skiing, snow-shoe racing, tobogganing, skating and more.

Tobogganing, by Richard Patterson (Girl's Own Paper, 1890)

An article encouraging Brits to take up the American sport of tobogganing, with information on how to make one's own toboggan.

Skating (Stories of History, 1891)

An Alpine Pass on "Ski," by A. Conan Doyle (The Strand, 1894B)

Tobogganing in the Engadine, by Celia Lovejoy (The Strand, 1895A)

How to Make an Ice Sledge (Girl's Own Paper, 1896)

Start with a wicker lawn chair!

Ice Boats and Ice Boating, by Beckles Willson (Cassell's, 1900)

Skating, by Christine Handley (Girl's Own Paper, 1900)

Swiss Children's Winter Sports (Girl's Own Paper, 1901)

Skating, by Arthur G. Keane, MD (Drapers' Self-Culture, 1913)

Snow-Shoeing (Drapers' Self-Culture, 1913)

Tobogganing (Drapers' Self-Culture, 1913)