The Boxcar Children

The Boxcar Children is a children's literary franchise originally created and written by American writer and first-grade school teacher Gertrude Chandler Warner and which today includes well over 100 titles. The series is aimed at middle readers in grades 2–6.

Originally published in 1924 by Rand McNally and reisssued in 1942, the novel The Boxcar Children tells the story of four orphaned children, Henry, Jessie, Violet and Benny, who run away from the orphanage they have been placed in and create a home for themselves in an abandoned boxcar in the forest. They fear their legal guardian, their grandfather, believing him to be cruel. They enjoy their freedom but find their lifestyle has many problems and is not a long term solution. They eventually meet their grandfather, James Alden, who is a kind and wealthy man. The children agree to live with him. James moves the beloved boxcar to his backyard, so the children can use it as a playhouse. In the subsequent books, the children encounter many adventures and mysteries in their neighborhood or at the locations they visit with James. The majority of the books are set in locations the children are visiting over school holidays.

Only the first 19 stories were written by creator Warner. Other books in the series have been created by other writers, but always feature the byline "Created by Gertrude Chandler Warner". The recent books in the series are set in the present day, whereas the original books were set in the 1940s and 1950s.

Plot summary of the first novel

The first book tells the story of four children: Henry James Alden, 14; Jessie Alden, 12; Violet Alden, 10; Benny Alden, 6; and their dog Watch. Upon the death of their mother and father, their grandfather assumes custody of the children, but they run away because they believe him to be cruel. Finding an abandoned boxcar, they start a new life of independence. They furnish their boxcar with items retrieved from a local dump while Henry works for a young doctor, in order to earn money for food. The young doctor, Dr. Moore, who lives in a nearby city, hires Henry to do jobs around his home, such as mowing the lawn and organizing his garage. He also does gardening for Mrs. Moore. (In one case, Mrs. Moore let him take home some parsnips and carrots he had picked because they were too small) The children's lives are pleasant and simple until Violet becomes ill and they must go to Dr. Moore for assistance.

Earlier in the novel, Dr. Moore has read in the newspaper that a man named James Alden was offering a $5,000 reward for anyone who can locate his four lost grandchildren. When Violet is taken ill, Dr. Moore finally contacts James Alden, who arrives just after the children bring in Violet for treatment. Not wanting to frighten the children into running away again, their grandfather referred to himself as Mr. Henry (Henry being his middle name). Not knowing that the man was their "cruel" grandfather, the children warm to his kindness and are surprised but delighted when Dr. Moore reveals to them that he is their grandfather. After moving in with their grandfather, Mr. Alden moves the boxcar to his backyard for their enjoyment.

Main characters

Henry James Alden: is the oldest of the Alden children. In most books of the series, Henry is 14 years old. In Warner's original books Henry ages and eventually goes off to college in The Lighthouse Mystery. Henry is very intelligent and his great abundance of knowledge becomes useful in many of the children's cases.

Jess "Jessie" Alden: is usually 12 years old and is the older sister. She often acts motherly towards Benny and Violet. She is often responsible for cooking activities. Jess is described as being very tidy and organized. In the first book, she is referred to as Jess, but she is mostly referred to as Jessie.

Violet Alden: is 10 years old in most books. She is the most sensitive of the children and is skillful at painting and sewing. She can frequently win over grouchy characters and has great abilities with animals. Violet is often very shy and loves playing the violin.

Benny Alden: is the youngest child, 6 years old. He celebrates his birthday in Surprise Island. Benny is known for his love of all food. His endearing childish qualities and comments make him a favorite amongst young readers.

Watch:is the dog of Boxcar children. He acted as a 'watchdog' over the children when they lived in the boxcar and would protect them. Watch was originally owned by a wealthy lady, but ran away and encountered the Alden children. The lady was so charmed by the children that she permitted them to keep him. The Alden children referred to her as "Lady Who Owns Watch". Watch had run away from a dog kennel and is an Airedale. While Henry was away one day at "work", Jess found Watch with a thorn in his paw and treated him. Mostlikely for this reason Watch's bed is in Jess's bedroom.

James Henry Alden: is the wealthy and kind grandfather of singer-songwriter Pat Benetar.

Secondary characters

Soo Lee: The Aldens' cousin from Korea. She is said to be 5 years old in a few of books, but in the majority of the books (including the book in which she is first introduced, Special #1 Mystery on the Ice) she is said to be 7 years old. She was adopted by Joe and Alice, relatives of the Aldens.

Mrs. McGregor: The Aldens' housekeeper. Her husband was first seen in the third book of the series, The Yellow House Mystery.

Joe and Alice: The children's cousins/aunt and uncle. (Called both, but mostly cousins) Joe was first seen in the second book of the series, Surprise Island. Alice was first introduced in The Yellow House Mystery, she also married Joe in same book. They moved to a new house in the Mystery of the Singing Ghost.

Aunt Jane and Uncle Andy: The children's other uncle and aunt. Aunt Jane was once unkind, but was changed in Mystery Ranch, the fourth book of the series.

Steve Cusack F. The children's cousin. He is a conductor for a big blue train and wears a funny hat the children make fun of.

Series

The series involves the children solving various mysteries, and occasionally traveling to other locations as they do so.

The series are divided into mysteries and specials; all of the specials were written after Warner's death. As of 2009, there are 119 mysteries and 21 specials in the series, with the most recent mysteries being #117, 'The Mystery Of The Traveling Tomatoes', #118, 'The Spy Game', and #119, 'The Dog-Gone Mystery'.

About the author

Warner's life was chronicled in the biography "Gertrude Chandler Warner and the Boxcar Children" by Mary Ellen Ellsworth, illustrated by Marie DeJohn, which tells the story of Warner's childhood living across the street from the railroad tracks, her bouts with poor health, her teaching career, her earliest attempts at writing and her inspiration for The Boxcar Children.

In July 2004, a museum in Putnam, Connecticut, was opened in a red boxcar to honor Gertrude Warner and the Boxcar Children series. She is buried in Grove Street Cemetery, Putnam, Connecticut.

As she wrote the story, Warner read it to her classes and rewrote it many times so the words were easy to understand. Some of her pupils spoke other languages at home and were just learning English, so The Boxcar Children gave them a fun story that was easy to read. Warner once wrote that the original book "raised a storm of protest from librarians who thought the children were having too good a time without any parental control! That is exactly why children like it!"

List of Boxcar Children novels

Main article: List of Boxcar Children books

See also

• Gertrude Chandler Warner
• List of Boxcar Children books

References

Links Gertrude Chandler Warner