Limberjack

Jig dolls are traditional wooden or tin-plate 'toys' for adults or children. They are dolls with loose limbs that step dance or 'jig' on the end of a vibrating board or platform in imitation of a real step dancer. In London they were frequently operated by street entertainers or buskers. In England old soldiers from the Great War sometimes busked with them to supplement their meagre war pensions. Typically the dolls are between 20–30 cm tall and are jointed at arms, hips and knees; some also have ankle joints. Today, jig dolls of one kind or another can be seen in the USA, Canada, the UK, Ireland, Europe, parts of Asia, and Australia.

In the UK and Australia, a jig doll usually goes by that name, or any of the following: dancing doll; busker's puppet; clogger; jigger; Mr. Jollyboy or Mrs. Jollyboy (a commercial version made by Dover Toys, UK), etc. A Mr Jollyboy is in the collection of the Norwich Museum.

In the USA, a jig doll would be called a limberjack or limberjill or limbertoy; paddle puppet; stick puppet. A commercial version was called: Dancing Dan or Dancin' Dan; Dapper Dan; Dancing Jo or Dancin' Jo; Stepping Sam or Steppin' Sam, etc.

In French-speaking parts of Canada they are referred to as les gigueux.

In one old patent the term Manipulable Doll was used.

Dancing dolls have been popular street entertainment for hundreds of years. Older versions dating back to the 16th century were known as Poupées à la Planchette or Marionettes à la Planchette. These puppets, operated by a horizontal string attached to the musician's leg, 'danced' on a board on the ground as the musician tapped his foot. They were, and still are, popular street entertainment throughout Europe.

At some stage, possibly in the mid-19th century, the string was replaced by a wooden rod fixed into the back of the body, or attached to a wire loop on the top of the doll's head, with the doll dancing on a vibrating board. Later, some jig dolls were automated.

The East Anglian Traditional Music Trust (EATMT) reports that the earliest jig doll yet discovered is one from the Victorian Great Exhibition at The Crystal Palace dating from 1851. A female figure, dressed in a skirt, petticoat, bodice and shawl, it is now in the Cliffe Castle Museum, Keighley, Yorkshire."

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Wikipedia