At
the turn of the century, Halloween parties became the most common way for kids and adults to celebrate the day. At the turn of the century, Halloween parties became the most common way for kids and adults to celebrate the day. In the 1920s and 1930s, Halloween had become a secular but community-oriented holiday, with a focus on parades and Halloween parties across the city. At the height of hysteria, some hospitals offered free X-rays of Halloween transports for children to find evidence of manipulation
.
The American Colonial-style Halloween festivities held large public festivals to commemorate the upcoming harvest, tell ghost stories, sing, and dance. Parents were encouraged by newspapers and community leaders to bring something “scary” or “grotesque” to the Halloween festivities
.
What is Halloween and why do we celebrate it?
People started having parties that featured harmless Halloween games, seasonal fall treats, and funny costumes about witchcraft and spiteful troublemaking. Travel back in time with us to learn what some of the very first Halloween festivities looked like, including ghoulies and ghosts, what people used to carve instead of pumpkins, and even the elements that Valentine’s Day and Halloween have in common. Whether you choose the supernatural or not, it’s still fun to learn about the meaning of your favorite Halloween traditions before you go trick-or-treating. With Halloween Day just around the corner on October 31 (that’s a Tuesday this year), you’ve come to the right place if you’re looking for inspiration for an evening of fun for kids
and adults.
In fact, in the 19th century, Halloween already offered a huge (albeit rather superstitious) opportunity to find young women.
