Looking Back at the Always Extraordinary ‘White Elephant Sale’, 10 Facts You May Not Know About It

OLD LYME—It may have been a little damp but the eagerly-anticipated White Elephant Sale hosted by the First Congregational Church of Old Lyme duly opened yesterday on the first strike of the church clock at 9 a.m. It was open again Saturday from 8 a.m. to 12 noon, when most items were half-price. 

Organized by the LBS (Ladies Benevolent Society) of the church, the sale has been a summer mainstay of the area since 1936 (except for two years due to the pandemic).

Here are 10 facts about the White Elephant Sale that you may not know:

• In the earliest years of the First Congregational Church of Old Lyme – in the mid- to late 1600s – the women of the church cooked food and sewed clothing to raise money to help support the church’s charitable projects.
• In 1888, the women of the church officially formed the Neck Road Society and, over the years, the Society held concerts, socials and other events to raise money for local causes.
• By 1917, the Society was holding suppers for the men in the Connecticut National Guard.
• In 1920, the Society held its first-ever rummage sale – a small event confined to a single room of the church – which raised $200 for charity, a surprising amount of money at the time.
• The name, “White Elephant Sale,” was given to the event in 1936 and it thereafter became an annual tradition.

• In the 1950s, the sale briefly expanded to include a country fair, horse show and square dance; then in subsequent decades, evolved into the popular, two-day local tradition we enjoy today.
• During and after World War II, the Society used the proceeds of the sale to support a variety of international charitable causes – including helping an orphan from Czechoslovakia, a church in England and children in China. (Today it benefits more than 25 nonprofit organizations across our region and around the world.)
• Sometime during mid- to late- 1900s, the name of the group was changed to the Ladies Benevolent Society. Since that time, as the Society has expanded to include men as well as women, and people of varying faiths and backgrounds, the Society has increasingly gone by just its initials, “LBS.”
• In 2020 and 2021, the sale was canceled for the first (and only) times in its long history due to the coronavirus pandemic.
• Proceeds from the sale benefit the many ministries of the church, including a wide variety of local, national, and international endeavors such as food pantries, health organizations, family support centers, children’s programs, literacy volunteers, affordable housing, native American causes, social justice initiatives, and disaster relief.

While there are other garage and rummage sales throughout the year, few can match the size, color, camaraderie, and excitement of this one.  Renowned for its quality merchandise, you will find antiques, art, books, bikes, canoes, clothing, collectibles, kayaks, kitchenware, musical instruments, shoes, ski equipment, tools, toys and more.

Volunteers are needed in every area of the sale. If you would like to volunteer, call the church office at 860-434-8686.

For more information on the sale, visit this link.