By now we've finally warmed up from trick-or-treating, the costume parties are over and the meticulously carved pumpkins are looking a little rough around the edges. Another Halloween is in the books. Celebrating Halloween is hardly new — its roots date back to the pre-Christian Celtic festival of Samhain, which was celebrated the night of Oct. 31. We've just ramped things up a bit since then, making it the nation's second-largest commercial holiday, according to the National Retail Federation. But before all the candy is gone and we start planning next year's haunted holiday, let's take a look at what Halloween looked like for our readers over the past 50 years. It's our treat.
Before Pinterest: In 1969, a trip to Mardi Gras inspired Mrs. Robert Wrobleski to make papier-mâché masks for Halloween. She and fellow mom Mrs. Robert Osman crafted their kids’ costumes (from left): Nana from Peter Pan, Tinker Bell, the Big Bad Wolf and Pixie the Mouse. (The Minnesota Star Tribune)
The great pumpkins: Ron and Diana Axdahl with the 1,170 pumpkins in their Stillwater yard on Halloween in 1989. Yes, they carved 1,170 jack-o’-lanterns and lit 1,170 candles. The Axdahl family had been building Halloween displays for years, but said this was their biggest effort. The biggest problem? Finding all those candles. The pumpkins, which were grown by Ron’s brother Larry, were trucked back to the farm the next day and became compost. (The Minnesota Star Tribune)
