The Boxcar Children Chapter 3 Summary

A New Home in the Woods

  • Good morning. Jessie is up first, and she realizes there's about to be a big storm.
  • She takes initiative and walks off into the woods, looking for shelter. She comes upon an old boxcar. Something tells Shmoop that this might be where the Boxcar Children get their name.
  • Jessie runs back to the other kids and tells them about the boxcar. The storm is imminent, so they take off through the woods.
  • It starts to rain before they get to the boxcar. Jessie and Henry arrive first and roll back the heavy door.
  • As the storm begins in earnest, the Boxcar Children just chill in the boxcar.
  • Violet declares the empty, old boxcar totally perfect. Sure, Violet, whatever you say.
  • Finally, the storm ends and the children emerge into the forest. It's really pretty. Jessie declares that they should live there; the boxcar can be their house.
  • Benny doesn't want to live in the boxcar because he thinks an engine will come along and hit it. And also, it's a boxcar.
  • Henry explains that the boxcar has been abandoned and the track is no longer in use. Henry is totally on board with this living-in-a-boxcar plan.
  • Giving up, Benny asks about dinner. Guess what's on the menu? Bread.
  • Benny starts to cry because he hates his sad bread dinner. Shmoop is starting to think he's the most sensible of the children.
  • Henry decides he'll walk into town and get some milk.
  • He's worried about leaving the girls on their own, but Jessie tells him not to worry and that they'll have a surprise for him when he gets back.
  • When Henry is gone, Jessie tells the other kids she saw some blueberries in the woods. That's the surprise.
  • They're about to gather blueberries when Jessie hears something making noise in the woods. Oh, dear.