~Halloween Past~

History altered 7-20-01

Halloween began as a sacred Celtic festival, called Samhain. It was believed that souls of the dead were judged on this night, & able to roam free. People set out food for their departed loved ones, & wore disguises to fool the 'evil' spirits into thinking they were one of them, & they would be left alone. Parades with everyone in masks would lead evil spirits away the the edges of town, turnips were hollowed out & lit with candles to ward off evil,& bonfires would be lit to fuel the sun, so it would return in the spring.
Soon, Christainity came along. The Catholic church integrated their celebrations with the rituals of the Pagans, probably to ease the tranition into Christianity. Thus All Saint's Day & All Soul's day came into being. The Church encouraged people to give food to the poor, & in exchange the poor would pray for the souls of the departed. The poor would come begging door to door with a lit turnip- the origins of trick-or-treating. The Pagans were also encouraged to continue to dress in costume, not as evil spirits, but to honor saints. People would then hold their parades dressed as angels, saints & devils.
Americanized Halloween began with the first settlers, who celebrated the first Thanksgivings with harvests, community, barn raisings, & parties with games, singing & dancing. Ghost stories were told, probably derived from the original beliefs that dead loved ones roam on Halloween night. Pumpkins instead of turnips were hollowed out & lit. Old divination practices of the druids were turned into games. Single girls would peel an apple in a single paring. The paring, thrown over the shoulder, was supposed to land in the shape of their future husband's initial. If you bobbed for apples & got one, you would marry first.
As people immigrated to America, each region brought different customs. Southern states were especially superstitious with the integration of voodoo from the slaves. In the wild west, people feared ghosts above all else. Northern states were the areas popular with pranks.

In the 1870's the Victorians thought of Halloween as a cute custom. They changed it & made it their own. Instead of it's darker beginings, they focused on the games & parties. The first articles were written on how to throw a Halloween party, & it was a time of matchmaking & finding love.
In the early 20th century, costumes made their comeback, & Halloween was slowly gearing towards children.
Young people began out doing each others pranks, & by 1920, the pranks became dangerous. People would damage property, set fires & steal. School & church leaders started charity groups, & children gathered food & clothes for the poor. Neighborhoods banded together to make free treats to keep children from wreaking havoc elsewhere.
Despite everyone's good intentions, this didn't work for long. In the 1930's vandalism was so bad, many communities tried to ban Halloween. Eventually, 'clubs' were formed. Children who reported vandalism were given free parties from the city, complete with walk through 'haunted houses'. Large costume parades were held, drawing families.
By the 1950's Halloween celebrations became more of a holiday for children, instead of a way to keep would-be vandals occupied. It was also around this time that trick-or-treating gained momentum. The charity aspect started by the Church started with a donation to UNICEF (United Nation's Children's Fund). Trick-or-Treat for UNICEF is a project that continues till today.
In the 1960's & 70's people became fearful of poisoned treats, & many people started giving out small toys, coins, or candy coupons. Some communities wanted to ban Halloween, instead, curfews were set, & trick-or-treating times designated.

From then on, Halloween once again became a holiday for adults, as well as children. Costumes went from evil spirits, to saints & angels, to anything goes.

The previous was my summary of the book Halloween- An American Holiday, an American History
By Lesley Pratt Bannatyne

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