Friends,
Myths, Magic, Mayhem, and more…
Today, I’ll guide you through the origins of Halloween’s iconic elements—where the veil between worlds grows thin. What transforms plastic masks, sugar-laden treats, fabricated frights, and cobwebbed porches into the magic of All Hallows’ Eve?
What are the myths behind the traditions?
Craving of pumpkins
The Devil is in the details, as this myth will prove.
There’s an old Irish tale of Stingy Jack, a man whose miserly nature earned him his moniker. Legend has it that one evening at the local tavern, Jack coaxed the Devil himself to share a pint. When the barkeep came collecting, Jack, true to form, declined to pay and instead convinced the Devil to transform into a coin for the tab.
The moment the Devil obliged, Jack slipped the coin into his pocket alongside a silver cross, imprisoning the Devil in his metallic state. Jack eventually freed his captive, but not before striking a bargain: the Devil must leave Jack’s soul untouched for a year.
When the appointed year had passed, the Devil appeared to claim his due. Quick-witted as ever, Stingy Jack persuaded the Devil to fetch him an apple from a nearby tree. As soon as the Devil had scaled the branches, Jack produced a knife and etched a cross into the bark, rendering the Devil powerless to descend. The Devil raged while Jack calmly proposed a bargain: freedom in exchange for a decade’s reprieve from damnation.
Now obviously, the Devil was upset, but he upheld his side of the bargain. Stingy Jack must have felt like he had won the lottery. That is, until he died.
Nowhere to go.
When the time came for Stingy Jack’s soul to depart his body, it found all doors closed. The Devil, bound by their bargain, refused him entry to hell, while heaven’s gates remained shut against his misdeeds. Condemned to wander the spaces between worlds, Jack drifted through twilight realms, searching for rest he would never find.
In a final gesture—perhaps mockery, perhaps mercy—Satan tossed him an ember from the infernal fires. Jack carved out a turnip and placed the coal inside, creating a lantern to illuminate his endless journey through the dark.
Hence the name- “Jack of the Lantern,” and then, simply “Jack O’Lantern.”
Costumes
While studying the history of costumes, I became entranced by the Morrigan—a goddess who ruled over both war and destiny. Her power to transform herself knew no bounds: she soared as a raven above clashing armies, lumbered through fields as a cow, slithered through waters as an eel, and prowled forests as a she-wolf. Through these metamorphoses, she taught her followers that changing one’s form could mean the difference between defeat and triumph.
This metamorphosis transcended mere fright; it offered people a chance to seize the reins of their own narratives. In our time, donning the guise of a vampire, werewolf, witch, or other creature of the night serves as a declaration that darkness holds no dominion over us.
Ancient records whisper of another possible reason: our ancestors would cloak themselves in grotesque masks and unrecognizable garments when delivering offerings to the deceased, so that the hungry dead might not otherwise remember their faces, follow them home, and drag them back to the cold earth.
Haunted Houses
Haunted Houses are not a modern invention, but rather an extension of horrifying exhibitions dating back to the early 1800’s.
1802- Marie Tussaud unveiled her grotesque exhibition of wax sculptures depicting the severed heads of French nobility, their glass eyes still seeming to glisten with the shock of the guillotine’s blade. Blood-red paint dripped from the meticulously crafted necks of King Louis XVI, Marie Antoinette, Marat, and Robespierre—each frozen in their final expression of terror. When she later enshrined these macabre trophies in a permanent collection, she christened it the “Chamber of Horrors.”
In Paris, the Grand Guignol Theater splashed across front pages when audiences witnessed actors’ limbs torn from writhing bodies, blood vessels bursting in crimson fountains that spattered the first three rows. Director Max Maurey stalked the aisles during performances, tallying fainting patrons like trophies, and reportedly kept a house doctor on staff—not to treat his mutilated performers, but to revive collapsed spectators who couldn’t stomach the butchery unfolding before their eyes.
Patrick Collins presented his wife, Flora, with an unusual gift in 1915: the world’s first haunted house attraction. His creation proved so popular that visitors still wind through its shadowy corridors at the Hollycombe Working Steam Museum in Liphook, England, to this day.
Popularity skyrocketed during the Great Depression, as families sought a way to entertain children on Halloween and to scale back the ‘mayhem’ they were causing in gardens, homes, and city buildings. Parents band together to create ‘haunted basements’ or rooms, and children would follow the ‘trail’ from one house to another- always under the watchful eye of an adult.
But the cherry to the sundae came from an unsuspected place. Disneyland. The Haunted Mansion at Disneyland opened in 1969, almost 20 years after Disney gave the green light for the project. The attraction was modeled on Evergreen House and Winchester Mystery House and was an immediate hit. Not long after it opened, over 82,000 people flocked through the gates in a single day.
Final Thoughts
Countless dark secrets of Halloween remain buried, waiting for us to unearth them together. I hope to guide you through the blood-soaked borderlands where ancient myths collide with brutal reality, where the veil between worlds thins, and where the truly terrifying lurks just beyond the edge of your vision!
When witches go riding,
And black cats are seen,
The moon laughs and whispers
‘Tis near Halloween.
Until next time, Keep Reading and Stay Caffeinated.
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If you’re looking for your next favorite read, I invite you to check out my book, The Raven Society. This spellbinding historical fantasy series takes us on a heart-pounding journey through forgotten legends and distorted history. Uncover the chilling secrets of mythology and confront the horrifying truths that transformed myths into monstrous realities. How far will you go to learn the truth?
The Writer and The Librarian (Book 1):
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