Memories Of Halloweens Past

I received another submission for this nostalgic blog series.  This one was perfectly timed for these short magical days before the High Holiday of Halloween.  It's very comforting to know that there are so many of us out there who really do keep that torch burning all year long, remembering those special moments and formative years where Halloween became something larger than life to us.  Something way more than just another holiday.  

Joseph Mello writes, "I remember as a kid (I was born in the early 70s) we would trick or treat for what felt like hours. It was usually my older sister, me and my younger brother, and some of our cousins, and various neighbor kids would slip in and out of the group. We would cover street after street. We had plastic pumpkins as little kids, but as we got older (and greedier) we would take pillowcases. And we would walk until we filled those bad boys.

One house one year took Polaroid photos of each kid and gave them to us in little folders to keep. Another lady used to make popcorn balls and give them to us with little bags of candy. She was really nice.

I remember people trying to scare each other. Making up stories about houses that seemed okay during the day but a hundred times scarier at night. One house had a lady we never saw and someone made up a story about her creeping out only at night to clean her yard.

Another house had what, in retrospect, was some strange piece of art, I'm sure. But my brother and I convinced ourselves it was a man who sat with his back to the window and NEVER moved. Frozen, staring into the room. Creeped ourselves out.

One Halloween, a cousin convinced us all to go into the cemetery. Our house shared a property line with a cemetery, and when we were kids it was open, like we could walk from our yard and it just slowly became cemetery. Eventually, the cemetery built a chain link fence around the property to keep troublesome kids out. But that Halloween, we went in, all scared but determined. We made it through to a place where they had left a lot of open land and built a statue with religious figures and a giant cross. My cousin then proceeded to act like she was possessed and writhe around on the grass. We all took turns scoffing at her and totally buying into it. Was a freaky walk back home, in the dark, with leaves crunching under our feet. Creepy night and it was just what we wanted, deep down.

Back home those nights, we would spill out our bags and do the trading of likes and dislikes with the others. Fun to try and get what we loved and ditch what we hated. 

All in all, good memories. Those years felt endless at the time, and now feel like a lifetime ago. Was good to relive the experience second-hand through my kids, but even they are grown now. I am just the candy giver now. Hope there are some kids getting the spooky Halloween night experiences."

Thanks, Joseph!  This sounds a lot like what the Halloweens of my youth were like!  Thanks so much for sharing these memories.

(Photo by me.)

For anyone interested in submitting, you can email me at pumpkinrot @ gmail . com (remove the spaces, of course!)

And thanks, Mr. Macabre, for the suggestion to do this blog series!  It's the gift that keeps on giving!

Click here to see all submissions.

Memories Of Halloweens Past

The next entry in this fun blog series is really something special.  It comes from MikeC(jasonv123), and I'm really grateful that he shared this one with us.

"I’ve been meaning to write my submission for Memories of Halloweens Past, and after last night's events I just had to write this up. Years ago, when I was young, we would go out trick or treating, and I was typically a vampire in those days.  After my parents took me out trick or treating, we would stop by my grandmother’s house as my last stop. She always had these old vintage pumpkin lanterns along with ceramic jack o lanterns that she would decorate with. She would always give me a zip lock bag with candy and a few dollars in it. What I wouldn't give to go back in time and see her and her decorations one more time!  Years ago, you posted the same pumpkin lantern she had and after some research on eBay I found one for 40 bucks.  After my grandmother had passed away some years back, we couldn’t find her Halloween decorations.  Well, last night, we went to a Halloween party of my mother’s friend Helen.  Her parents and my grandparents were best friends.  After some time checking out Helen’s Halloween ornaments and decorations, I noticed a small skull lantern like my pumpkin lantern. I picked it up and was checking it out when she walked up and said, 'That was your grandmother Martha’s.'  I started to tear up and I was thinking of something to say.  She said, 'It’s yours now.'  I immediately cried!  I thanked her over and over.  After we got home, I took the old batteries out that have pretty much destroyed the internals, but that’s OK - I’ve got a small flicker led tea light powering it now."

Thanks, Mike!  This was great to read on the week of Halloween!  Thanks so much for sharing!

For anyone interested in submitting, you can email me at pumpkinrot @ gmail . com (remove the spaces, of course!)

Memories Of Halloweens Past

The next submission for this fun blog series comes from author Karen Joan Kohoutek.  It's a special memory as it demonstrates those rare moments when we were young that helped form our love for this strange holiday.  

She shared "I wrote an entire book about my Halloween memories, but in fact, one of my earliest memories is of trick-or-treating. The other is going to a small-town carnival, so obviously I had a Bradbury-esque childhood! I couldn’t have been more than four years old, and we lived in a very small town, on a short street with maybe four houses on each side. My mom made me an Underdog mask, drawing it on a paper bag and cutting it out, and I carried another paper bag with Halloween pictures drawn on it.

One of my older sisters took me to the houses on the block, and I was absolutely dazzled to be outside after dark, walking in the mysterious night air. I don’t remember any other kids, just the two of us in a nearly silent world. Just the trees, and the neighbor houses that all seemed unlike themselves, like we were in a new dimension where nothing was normal. I assume there were lit jack-o-lanterns on the steps and fallen leaves on the sidewalk, because I don’t remember that, but when I see them at night, or certain images of them, I feel a jolt from this memory.

It probably took less than a half hour to go to all the houses and get me back home with my candy, but in some ways I’ve never gotten over that night. The experience somehow imprinted on me, and everything Halloween still fills me with a poignant joy."

Image source (Figured it was appropriate for this story).

Click here for her book.

and click here to see all the Memories of Halloweens Past!

And thanks again, Mr. Macabre, for suggesting this series.  It's the gift that keeps on giving.

For anyone interested in submitting, you can email me at pumpkinrot @ gmail . com (remove the spaces, of course!)

Memories Of Halloweens Past

Received a really terrific memory from fellow haunter Jeff (from the always-awesome Ragged Grin Haunt).  

Jeff shared, "My Halloween memories could fill volumes. Trick-or-treating in a town that celebrated and valued the holiday, building and designing the youth group haunt in my church basement, my big brother babysitting me while working at the local Jaycee's haunted house, and one of his female classmates dressing me up as a hobo and walking the queue line at 7 years old asking for change in exchange for fresh eyeballs. All of these experiences would instill and shape the love for the holiday that I hold so dear to this day. 

One thing however stands out that I will forever remember, the Scarecrow. My father was a hardworking, salt of the earth, gruff sort of man. Stern, but always fair. But "Big Harry", as he was called, had a mischievous side that not many got to see. His was a difficult upbringing.  He was the third oldest son in a family of eight kids, his two older brothers drinkers and troublemakers.  My father quit school in the 10th grade to go to work and learn construction because both of his parents became ill. By the time he escaped Clarington, PA for a construction gig in Pittsburgh, he had seen all of his younger siblings graduate and find purpose. For years I sat puzzled as my aunts and uncles referred to him as "Had" for reasons I wouldn't understand until my teens. But the Scarecrow - Dad liked to have fun where he could, "one could only put up with so much seriousness," so one of my earliest memories of Halloween was helping, basically handing him stuff, while he built a scarecrow from old work pants, boots, and a red flannel shirt stuffed with bagged leaves. A burlap sack with one eye cut out and an old wide brimmed hat finished the deal along with some old work gloves.  And soon, Patch the scarecrow sat in an old rocker on the front porch about a week before October 31st. As the big night approached (school parties, etc.), I became aware that my parents were occasionally discussing the event while in the kitchen over dinner prep, dishes, etc. and laughter often ensued. Come Halloween night, I would abruptly and vividly discover why.  Dad would routinely wear green work pants and a consistent rotation of plaid flannel shirts to work, always the same brand, colors, and patterns, bought from the same store, and always tannish Red Wing boots on his feet. When I left to join my friends and a parent on the sidewalk to begin this most spooky of events... Patch stood up to see me off.  I nearly landed on the roof and many on the sidewalk shrieked in shock. 

My dad...was cool! 

I would learn that Dad had gotten the idea from a coworker and thought it would be a fun thing for he and I to do...and he could scare the piss out of me and everyone else in the process. Sometimes it was him, sometimes just a bag of leaves and clothes. Sometimes the dummy was laying half askew in the lawn and his "twin" would sneak out from the sides of the house. Then one year, long past my first encounter with Patch, there were two chairs.  Then after a few more years only one, and eventually none. One of my last conversations with my father revolved around that first year and how much fun we had in ensuing Halloweens. Having been adopted and looking nothing like my parents and extended family, I'll always cherish the few, undeniable similarities between father and son, so vastly different, but alike in tangible, powerful ways as well. 

Long after Big Harry passed and I had my own kids, my oldest son would help me build, I believe, an even scarier version of Patch...red plaid shirt, green work pants...with a wry smile and one visible eye. 

Many swore he moved as well."

Thanks, Jeff!  Really appreciate you sharing that about your dad.  It's a wonderful memory.

For anyone interested in submitting, you can email me at pumpkinrot @ gmail . com (remove the spaces, of course!)

And click here to see past entries!

Memories Of Halloweens Past

The next entry for this nostalgic blog series comes from my gal Jenna.  I've had the pleasure of seeing this neat item up close, so it was really wonderful hearing about its backstory.

Jenna writes "Over the years people have often asked me, 'Why do you like Halloween so much?' or 'Why do you like such scary things?'  I don't really have an answer for them. Truthfully, I have always found myself drawn to darker interests. Poe and R.L. Stine in grade school. The Twilight Zone and heavy metal in middle school. But when thinking about my favorite memory of Halloweens past (thanks to Mr. Macabre), my thoughts kept coming back to a very non-scary subject: My Grandmother, from now on referred to as Grandie (a nickname of her own creation). She is decidedly not spooky, or scary, and does not relate to my love of horror movies and dark art, but she was formative for my love of Halloween. 

Grandie and my Grandfather lived out in the country, not far from the previously mentioned Hex Hollow. In fact, my first haunted hayride as a kid was the local fire hall hayride that took you though Hex Hollow the week or so before Halloween.

She was Martha before Martha - making loads of homemade candy, Golden Grahams smores bars, and soft pumpkin cookies with caramel frosting in the days leading up to the High Holiday. The house was filled with decorations - a sound activated laughing witch (long gone), tons of paper Hallmark party goods, and a unique ceramic pumpkin that she would save for me to put together (once I was old enough to be trusted not to break it). 

This particular decoration encompasses all the imagery I love and associate with Halloween - ghosts, a spooky tree, a cemetery, and a jack-o-lantern. Each year, I would arrange the ghosts around the tree, always in the same places, like a ritual. The tombstone and the jack-o-lantern were my absolute favorites, and would go in the very front, so that I could take them out and hold them whenever I wanted.  It wasn't truly Halloween until this pumpkin was on display. 

Grandie is still with us and turned 98 this year. Knowing my love of Halloween, she handed down her recipes and decorations over the years as she downsized and moved into a retirement community. I think the ceramic pumpkin was the first decoration she gave me when she moved - she knew how much I loved it. Now I am the one decorating and hosting for Halloween, and though she doesn't always understand the darker decor, she loves seeing how we spend our holiday, and will forever be an important part of my Halloween."

For anyone interested in submitting, you can email me at pumpkinrot @ gmail . com (remove the spaces, of course!)

And click here to see past entries!

Memories Of Halloweens Past

Anoka, Minnesota is known as the Halloween Capital of the World (read about it here), and I've joked more than a few times that my ultimate goal in life is to move there.  I received a wonderful email from a fellow haunter who actually resides in Anoka, and he shared his favorite memory of Halloweens past.

Dan Wiswell writes "My submission for this topic is my vintage Anoka Halloween banner.  At nearly 5 ft tall and 3 ft wide, and made of heavy duty canvas, it flew in its official capacity decorating downtown somewhere during the 1950-1965 time frame.  At a family gathering in the summer of 2009, the topic of these banners came up, and the quest to find one began.

After consulting with the chamber of commerce, who provides the city with the banners, I learned that the city had housed a number of the banners and other old Halloween memorabilia in the basement of city hall. However, a vast cleaning around the year 2000 had sent many of these items to the landfill. I was crushed. They suggested a few members of the Halloween committee may have spared some things, but would probably be reluctant to sell.  I was offered a contact with a previous Anoka Halloween president and was able to purchase a newer style black canvas banner with three pumpkins.  This was the redesigned logo, not the orange top hatted pumpkin banners of my youth which were made of thick vinyl similar to a school patrol flag.  The money went to charity, but I was still disappointed. Then I found this banner on ebay in October of 2009. The seller had asked $300 for it, but found no takers. Against policy, (sorry I was new to ebay) I privately messaged the seller and struck a deal. It hangs with its newer counterpart in the basement near the fireplace and is on prime display outside during the public viewing nights of the house decorating contest and on Halloween night.  It always sparks conversation, and I have been asked numerous times, especially during the 2020 season (Anoka's 100th year celebrating), if I would sell it. The chamber and city even returned to this design in 2019, because it was beloved, in a nod to tradition. 

These banners remind me of not only my own Halloweens, but also of celebrating with my niece and nephews, and of the now 15 years of being involved officially with the celebration through the house decorating contest."

Thanks, Dan!  So glad you're the curator of these banners. I can't think of a more suitable home for them.

Click here to see some photos of his Home Haunt.

For anyone interested in submitting, you can email me at pumpkinrot @ gmail . com (remove the spaces, of course!)

And click here to see past entries!

And thanks again to Mr. Macabre for the suggestion for this fun blog series!

Memories Of Halloweens Past

The next entry in the Memories of Halloweens Past blog series is a neat one:  a ghost story of sorts.  It comes from Stefanie Renee, and it affected her so much that she wrote a song about the experience.

She writes, "For as long as I can remember, I’ve had this Halloween vision (memory?) and I don’t know if it actually happened or not. I honestly don’t know if it is a memory or if it’s just a dream I had at some point in my life.

I was a little girl… maybe seven… and it was Halloween night (this would have been the late seventies). I had already gone trick-or-treating, and was home alone. Mom & Dad had walked over to a neighbor’s house to visit for just a few minutes (perhaps to deliver a pumpkin pie), and older brother was at a school party or with a friend or somesuch.

It was later in the evening, definitely dark outside. I grew up on a dead end street, and at this late hour it was even quieter than usual… a real spooky kind of quiet.

I glanced out the kitchen window… or was it the living room? Both rooms were side by side, each with large windows looking out to the street. Suddenly, I spied a dark, tall, shadowy figure striding across the street. Dressed all in black with a tall top hat, it looked like a character I’d never seen before. My little heart jumped in my chest, and the hairs on the back of my neck stood up with a chill only such a night could bring about. This other-worldly spirit was walking toward the dead end of the street. (No one ever did that unless they lived there… it was a pretty sleepy area) Most of our neighbors are/were elderly, and unlikely to have dressed in costume or gone out at all.

In my terror, the moment turned to slow motion. There was a moment when I believed with all my heart that this being would turn and start walking toward my house. Part of me kinda wanted it to. In the words of Willy Wonka, “The suspense is terrible… I hope it will last…”

Alas, the figure kept walking. And that was that.

I recounted this memory to my mother at one point, and she wasn’t convinced it really happened, telling me, “Oh, honey- we wouldn’t have left you alone when you were that young…” But it was only for a moment, so it was definitely possible. And since no one else was there with me, I will never know if it really happened. And honestly... I like it that way. That mystery, to me, perfectly embodies the spirit of Halloween."

Stefanie's Ethereal Darkwave band is called Accolade, and you can listen to their beautiful song by clicking HERE.  

For anyone interested in submitting, you can email me at pumpkinrot @ gmail . com (remove the spaces, of course!)

And click here to see past entries!

Memories Of Halloweens Past

The next nostalgic entry for cherished memories and special Halloween possessions comes from Revenant Manor.  In his own words...

"Allow me to present Jack.  While he is certainly not our oldest Halloween item, and while at first glance he seems kind of silly and plastic, he has creeped his way into our Halloween season in a way that other treasures simply haven't (and really can't).

You see, Jack is a hand puppet; a sinister 10" little guy with articulated stretching arms that can act as a bit of an avatar for someone so inclined. 

He arrived on the scene ~20 years ago at the perfect time to help introduce two young daughters to Halloween. Offering the perfect mix of slightly scary and mostly silly when being chased around a house; he's been a part of the Halloween backdrop their entire lives.  

Over the years, he has spent spooky season leering in from darkened doorways, unexpectedly poking his head around corners, tapping the shoulders of unsuspecting people, appearing from nowhere at just the right moment during a spooky movie scene, greeting visitors at the front door, and generally causing the household pets to wonder what exactly is wrong with their humans. 

The kids (both the two and four-footed kind) have all known Jack since their earliest days, and have enjoyed his antics...it's really just not Halloween season until he arrives on the scene."

What an amazing design.  Seeing something like this makes me wonder why we don't see anything similar out there these days, as something like this would sell out every season for sure.  It's Sinister.  It's beautiful.

Thank you, RM, for sharing this incredible piece from your collection!  I love imagining its antics each Halloween season.  

And for anyone wanting to see this guy in action, click the link below!

Jack in motion.

For anyone interested in submitting, you can email me at pumpkinrot @ gmail . com (remove the spaces, of course!)

And click here to see past entries!

Memories Of Halloweens Past

The next entry for this fun blog series comes from Raven176.  It's a rare and unique paper decoration of Frankenstein's monster.  "Probably the best dollar my parents ever spent," he shared.  "Fifty plus years now.  Surprised beyond belief that he survived three kids and two dogs.  It's not Halloween without the big guy."

I love this submission, as paper decorations were the thing back when I was growing up.  You'd see something like this or a Dracula or that wonderful Beistle skeleton hanging on a front door as you walked to school in those final weeks of October.  

I did some searching, and it seems this particular decoration was something you could order along with Boney the Skeleton.  They would come with glow-in-the-dark stickers that could be placed over the eyes.  As a kid, that would have been pure magic having something like that hanging on the back of my bedroom door.

Thanks for sharing, Raven176!

Click here to see past submissions.

For anyone interested in submitting, you can email me at pumpkinrot @ gmail . com (remove the spaces, of course!)

Memories Of Halloweens Past

The next submission for this fun blog series (click here to see the others) comes from the super talented home haunter Fraidy.  This one is terrific, and it's not tied to a particular Halloween possession, but rather a haunted attraction - The Indianapolis Children's Museum Haunted House.  Started in 1964, it's the oldest continually operated spook house in the country.  Fraidy shared that she has many fond memories visiting this attraction and provided some links featuring vintage photos from its early days... Old School Halloween Heaven for sure, "Looking back, it was actually pretty scary! - even for adults - and over the years, it has inspired countless young Halloween fans to make haunted houses of their own."

Click below for a fantastic article about the Haunted House, which includes some amazing would-never-do-that-stuff-now memories from a blogger who grew up near the attraction.  Here's an excerpt:

October 1 was the day we walked into our classrooms at school and found the “Dial-A-Witch” flyer on our desks promoting that year’s version of the haunted house.  While the themes of the haunted house would change annually, there was always a loose association with these witches who were kind of the marketing team for the haunted house.  The “Dial-A-Witch” flyer would not only provide with the hours of operation for the haunted house, but provide you with a 1-800 number to call in order to talk to a witch.  This, for me, was as sacred a Halloween tradition as trick-or-treating!

Read the rest here.

And click here for some wonderful vintage photos.

This submission opens up some possibilities for this blog feature - so if you're sitting there thinking that you don't necessarily have a Halloween item that's been with you for decades, but you have a specific memory that you cherish and that may have started your Halloween obsession, send it on!  I would love to post it on the blog.   

Thanks, Fraidy!  This was really great.  I had never heard of this Haunted House before.

Click here for her Youtube channel.

Click here for her Instagram account.

For anyone interested in submitting, you can email me at pumpkinrot @ gmail . com (remove the spaces, of course!)

Memories Of Halloweens Past

The next submission for this fun feature (suggested by Mr. Macabre) comes to us from artist Jerem Morrow.  His nostalgic Halloween possession was given to him back when he was 15 years old, as payment for cleaning the house for one of his mom's friends.  "I'd never seen anything that embodied my sense of Halloween spirit so thoroughly," he shared.  "As an artist myself, I've drawn and sculpted many spooky pieces and this still remains the pinnacle of High Holiday art for me."

As a Halloween blogger since 2007, I have seen my share of ceramic Halloween decor and I have never come across anything quite like this.  It is packed with Old School Halloween charm, and it feels like something you'd see in October in the window of a shadowy house on some lonely leaf-filled street.

Click here for Jerem's Instagram account.

For anyone interested in submitting, you can email me at pumpkinrot @ gmail . com (remove the spaces, of course!)

Memories Of Halloweens Past

Following up Mr. Macabre's favorite nostalgic possession comes something all the way from Austria - a very old (perhaps 100 years) grain sickle.  Scarecrow Atelier shares this special piece that's been in his family since the days it was used in the fields.  

Many years ago, the rusty blade was found while rummaging in the attic of his family home.  "It fascinated me so much that I couldn't get it out of my head," he shares.  "For me, it was synonymous with the harvest. The smell of hay and straw from a hard time when people told one or two scary stories in the evenings by the flickering candlelight.  And when you woke up in the middle of the night to a thunderstorm, you thought about the story from the evening again. You looked out the window and lightning lit up the night and the scarecrow that was standing out there in the field.  Watching over the crops and... why is it so close to the house? I had put it on the hill?  This story played in my head as I held the sickle in my hand in the attic. My love for scarecrows was awakened."

Thanks, Scarecrow Atelier!  It's wonderful trying to imagine what this sickle has seen over the decades.  And it's really perfect that it's currently cherished by a man who builds fantastic scarecrows.

For anyone interested in submitting, you can email me at pumpkinrot @ gmail . com (remove the spaces, of course!)

Memories Of Halloweens Past

Was talking to long-time blog reader Mr. Macabre and he suggested a neat project of sorts for this old Halloween blog.  An open call to anyone who wants to partake.  An invitation to submit a photo and maybe a blurb about your favorite Halloween possession.  You know the one - that special item you've had for years and years.  The one that reminds you of all the things you love about our High Holiday.  That particular decoration or object you couldn't do without.  

The first submission is by Mr. Macabre himself.  This special piece was made by his daughter when she was in kindergarten - 30 years ago.  A jack o'lantern made from a brown paper lunch bag, with a perfect little face.

I can see why such a thing would be cherished and on display for decades.  It's perfectly nostalgic, and if I found something similar in a roadside antique shop, I would certainly buy it, wondering all about its backstory.

Thanks, Mr. Macabre!

I'm so glad you shared this Halloween memory with me.

For anyone interested in submitting, you can email me at pumpkinrot @ gmail . com (remove the spaces, of course!)