Around this time, Americans would carve jack-o'-lanterns out of potatoes and turnips. The tradition, which began in Ireland and Scotland, involved carving scary faces into these tubers and placing them by windows or doors to scare off wandering evil spirits such as Stingy Jack, who was said to have invited the Devil to have a drink with him.

Apples and nuts were major treats

Although candy apples are now a popular treat during Halloween season, apples had a much more prophetic -- and menacing -- purpose almost 200 years ago. In the mid-19th century, many Halloween celebrations involved apple bobbing -- a tub was filled with water and apples, and players would try to catch one with their teeth. Young unmarried people would compete to be the first to bite into an apple, which signaled that they would be the next to be allowed to marry. Some regions of the US held Snap Apple Night parties, a comparatively risky tradition in which an apple was put on one end of either a stick or string with a lit candle fixed at the other end. Participants tried to take a bite of the apple while the stick was spun around, trying to avoid the hot candle wax.













Tags
Previous Post Next Post