The Motor Boys were the heroes of a popular series of adventure books for boys at the turn of the 20th century issued by the Stratemeyer Syndicate under the pseudonym of Clarence Young. This series was published by Cupples & Leon and was issued with dustjackets and glossy frontispiece. Howard Garis (author of the Uncle Wiggly stories) wrote many, if not all, of these stories such as: The Motor Boys; or, Chums Through Thick and Thin (1906), The Motor Boys Overland; or, A Long Trip for Fun and Fortune (1906), The Motor Boys in Mexico; or, The Secret of the Buried City (1906), The Motor Boys Across the Plains; or, The Hermit of Lost Lake (1907), The Motor Boys Afloat; or, The Cruise of the Dartaway (1908), The Motor Boys on the Atlantic; or, The Mystery of the Lighthouse (1908) and The Motor Boys in Strange Waters; or, Lost in a Floating Forest (1909).