Hello everyone, Winnie Griggs here. I recently completed a short Christmas novella titled The Wrong Christmas Match. One of the pivotal scenes in the story involves a box social, so naturally I had to do a little research to make sure I got the details right.
I was already familiar with the fun story possibilities of these gatherings – the mystery, the bidding, and the chance that a gentleman might find himself sharing supper with the woman he hoped had prepared it – or that a woman might share hers with the gentleman she hoped would win it.
What I hadn’t realized was just how much those suppers could accomplish for an entire community.
For anyone unfamiliar with the custom, the basic idea was simple. Women and girls prepared meals for two and packed them in decorated boxes or baskets. The containers were presented anonymously and auctioned to the men. The winning bidder received not only the food inside but also the company of the woman who had prepared it for the duration of the meal.
The secrecy naturally added fun and suspense to the bidding. So did the possibility that a young woman might find some discreet way to let a favored gentleman know which box was hers.
But despite all that romantic potential, courtship wasn’t the official purpose of the evening. The money was.
Box socials were an ingenious way for small communities to raise funds. They didn’t require expensive supplies or professional organizers. Each woman contributed what she could make in her own kitchen, an auctioneer supplied a bit of showmanship, and neighbors supplied their coins – and perhaps a healthy dose of friendly competition.
The resulting funds could then be put toward whatever the community needed most.
Newspaper accounts and community histories from the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries offer some fascinating real-life examples.
One box supper held in the Taney City schoolhouse in Missouri benefited the local Sunday school. A newspaper account described the event as well attended.
In December 1897, the Daily Oklahoman announced a box supper at a new schoolhouse in Council Grove, Oklahoma Territory. The proceeds were earmarked for reading-circle books and a school library. The newspaper made the auction arrangements quite clear: the boxes would be sold to the highest bidder.
Books appear to have been a popular goal. One account from Texas recalled a box-supper fundraiser held for the library at a one-teacher school. Cowboys from a nearby ranch joined local farmers and ranchers for a Saturday-night dance and the auctioning of decorated supper boxes. The highest bidder received the meal and the company of the woman who made it – or, as the account rather amusingly put it, she “got to, or had to,” eat with him.
Not every school needed books. Some needed equipment that would otherwise have been difficult to afford.
Students at a public school in Geary, Oklahoma Territory, held a box supper to help purchase an organ. The local newspaper reported that the event was well attended and that the boxes brought anywhere from thirty cents to $2.50. It also credited the auctioneer with doing his part to keep the bidding lively.
Another Oklahoma box supper raised money for a community Christmas tree planned for the following week.
That example especially caught my attention. It shows how easily the box-supper idea could be adapted to the particular needs of a town and the season. The money might purchase books, support a Sunday school, provide music for school programs, or help make a community Christmas celebration possible.
And, of course, the evening offered benefits that couldn’t be measured in dollars and cents.
Families who lived miles apart had a reason to put aside their chores and gather in one place. Neighbors shared news, children enjoyed the excitement, and young people had an acceptable opportunity to spend time together. Everyone could contribute to a worthwhile cause while enjoying food, laughter, and a bit of suspense as each box went on the auction block.
I love the practicality of it. These communities took things they already had – cooking skills, simple ingredients, creativity, generosity, and neighborly spirit – and transformed them into something they needed. And if a romance happened to begin over a plate of fried chicken and biscuits, so much the better.
Reading these real-life accounts gave me the little details I needed to make the scene in my story feel authentic. They also helped me envision how the residents of Tucker’s Gap might use a box social to meet a need in their own community. In The Wrong Christmas Match, the proceeds are used to provide Christmas provisions for families in need. And, of course, the event creates some interesting possibilities for my characters.
The Wrong Christmas Match is a short novella that will be published as part of a collection featuring twenty-two historical Christmas romances. The collection, A Vintage Christmas To Remember, is up for preorder now and releases October 13. Here are more details:
A Vintage Christmas To Remember
Twenty-two authors. Twenty-two unforgettable love stories. One unforgettable season.
From snow-dusted frontier towns to snowbound Victorian manors to the shadow of war, this sweeping collection brings together twenty-three historical romances all wrapped in the hope of the season. Outlaws find redemption, strangers become sweethearts, secrets come to light, and second chances arrive right on time for Christmas.
Whether you love a marriage of convenience, a rugged cowboy, a mystery with a little danger, or a quiet miracle by the fire—there’s a story here for you!
Fun Bonus!
We created a fun flip-book-style magazine that tells you a little about each participating author and their story in the collection. You can find it HERE and best of all it’s totally FREE!
Now I’d love to hear from you. If your community held an old-fashioned box social today, what foods would you pack in your box? Leave a comment to be entered in a drawing for a signed copy of one of my books.
Love the stories you found.
I’d make my homemade macaroni and cheese, salad, biscuits, and chocolate chip cookies.
Thanks! And that sounds really yummy!
My menu would be meatloaf, rice, gravy, green beans, and chocolate cake.
That sounds really good but it might be a littlee tricky to transport 🙂
spaghetti, garlic bread, salad and brownies
Love it!
pasta, fudge
Short and sweet, literally 🙂
Fried chicken, potato salad, apples and chocolate chip cookies.
Yummy!
Hey Winnie! Thanks for the trip back to social gatherings! I remember cake auctions at church! I would pack fried chicken, potatoe salad, and chewy cake(some people call them Blondies)! It was a picnic basket I cooked for my husband to be! We drove his jeep to the river and at it there one beautiful spring day! Special memory. That’s been over 46 years ago! Whoa!
Thanks for the freebie! I’ll check out the series! Best wishes to you always!
Oh what fun memories! Thanks for sharing them
Mine would contain sandwiches as I’ve never fried chicken in my life. My Mom had her gall bladder removed when I was a baby so we didn’t get many fried foods. Grilled, baked , broiler or poached.
Sandwiches are one of my favorite meals. Simple but tasty!
I would do sub sandwiches and either chips or some sort of cold pasta or potato salad. We used to make that and take it to the drive in. Great memories.
I remember going to the drive-in. Brings back some good memories
I would do chicken with some sort of potatoes and a veggie. I think this was an amazing way to accomplish so many things with a boxed dinner.
Absolutely. And so filled with romantic possibilities 🙂
Buffalo Wings with a dip and avocados. Chips and a soda
Fun!
The best “seller” around here would be anything Bar-B-Que. Tough messy, my basket would have B-B-Q pork ribs, coleslaw, pie and sweet tea.
A truce southern meal! I love love love love barbecue, and ribs are the best!
Fried chicken, pasta salad, fresh vegetables, some kind of dessert, iced tea. Thank you for the memories of picnics in the country. God bless you.
You’re quite welcome! And that sounds absolutely delicious.
It would depend on the month, but I would do a chicken dish, baked beans, raw veggies, and a dessert .
That sounds good for any month!
Sandwiches and chocolate chip cookies
Simple and yummy! There’s not many who would argue with that
Great post, Winnie. I’ve always wanted to write a book that has a box social, but for some reason, I never have. They were a good way for couples to be together and often led to romance.
I really Loved, Loved the little magazine you put out with this release!! Wow, very nice. The graphics are so sharp and the blurbs were excellent. Wishing you ladies a ton of success, my Filly Sister!
Thanks so much Linda, I appreciate it. And yes I thought the lady who worked on the magazine did a great job
Fried chicken,fried potato salad, pickles, iced tea,watermelon, chocolate cake.
I’ve never heard a fried potato salad but it sounds good. You’ll have to send me that recipe 🙂
When I was a teenage we did this at our church as a fundraiser. It was so much fun!! I remember that my Grandmother helped me prepare my basket – we had homemade yeast rolls, chicken salad, deviled eggs, sweet pickles, macaroni salad, iced cold sweet tea and peach cobbler for dessert. I love the memories I have of me and my Nanny cooking and getting everything together. Thanks so much for the post today and the trip down memory lane:)
You’re welcome! And what fun memories, thanks for sharing
Fried chicken!
Always a crowd pleaser!
Sliced ham and cheese sandwiches, some grape and strawberries, lemonade to drink.
Simple and delicious, good plan!
My menu would have fried chicken, potato salad, fresh bread, butter, and brownies.
Ooh I haven’t had brownies in a while. My absolute favorite!
I would pack sandwiches, potato salad, fruit salad and some oatmeal raisin pecan cookies.
Sounds like a crowd pleaser!
Fried chicken, potato salad and brownies.
Yummy!!
Fried chicken, potato salad, grapes, strawberries, brownies with a layer of peanut butter spread on them and then a layer of chocolate frosting on top.
A regular feast!
I would bring sliced honey ham, a chunk of Baby Swiss Cheese, rolls, 7 Cup Salad (a type of fruit salad), potato salad, lemonade, iced tea, World’s Best Cookies (a chocolate chip, oatmeal, raisin, walnut cookie), and apples.
A Vintage Christmas To Remember looks really good. The flip book is the perfect way to let people know what it is like. I preordered mine.
Oh wow, thanks so much for the preorder! And your meal sound like a wonderful feast!
A southern box lunch would definitely include fried chicken, biscuits, and apple pie. I have always thought a box lunch auction would be so much fun. Can’t wait to read your story and all the others.
I agree that it sounds like it would be a lot of fun. And it presents so many fun story opportunities.
I would probably go old-fashioned – with a modern low-calorie twist! Fried chicken, in the air fryer, of course;potasto salad, made with riced cauliflower, watermelon, iced tea, and gluten-free cookies!
I would probably go old-fashioned – with a modern low-calorie twist! Fried chicken, in the air fryer, of course; potato salad, made with riced cauliflower, watermelon, iced tea, and gluten-free cookies!