The success of the school cafteria system depends on the parents, too!

hat people eat in all places and times depends upon who they are (religion, ethnic background), where they live (North side of Boston? Rural Nebraska?) and how much money they have (wealthy people have more choices).

In pre-industrial times, the midday meal was considered the main meal of the day. It was called dinner. People generally worked/went to school close to home and shared this meal with their families. American school children in this period had four basic choices when it came to lunch:

Home schoolers ate with the family.
Boarding schools served formal meals in common dining rooms.
Urban schools sent children home for lunch.
Rural schools let children go home or permitted them to eat a home-packed lunch if they lived far away.