A night for pranks
Today, Halloween in northwest Indiana means porch lights, costumes and bags of candy. A little over a century ago, it looked different. In many towns, Halloween night belonged to pranksters, and the next day’s newspaper reported the damage.
The usual tricks were simple and annoying. Young people soaped windows, carried off front gates and broke fences. In the country, tipping over outhouses was a favorite. People woke up on Nov. 1 to find out what had gone missing.
Whiting, 1906: extra police
Whiting, on the Lake Michigan shore in Lake County, gives a good picture of those years. In 2018, the Whiting-Robertsdale Historical Society shared what the local paper, the Lake County Times, had reported about Halloween in the early 1900s. The details below come from the society’s account.
In 1906, according to the society, the paper reported about 10 extra policemen on duty, on top of the usual force. It didn’t stop the pranksters. Gates were unhooked and carried away. The society says the biggest incident that year was a broken window at Recht’s Department Store downtown, and there was some excitement when a store employee chased several small children.
Whiting, 1909: a quiet year
Three years later, the society found, the paper reported that Halloween in Whiting had gone more quietly than ever. Then it listed what happened anyway.
Door mats and gates were stolen in large numbers. Beans and flour were thrown, often at house windows. And someone put soap on the streetcar rails. The motorman had to get off the car and throw sand on the rails to cover up the soap so the car could keep going.
If that was a quiet year, it’s easy to imagine the louder ones. The society also found a 1910 report of a large window at a home on 119th Street broken by Halloween pranks.
Taming the night
Across the country, towns looked for ways to keep young people busy instead. Anoka, Minnesota, is a famous example. After years of rough pranks, including one night in 1919 when cows ended up in the streets, a committee led by local businessman George Green organized a citywide celebration in 1920. It had a parade, a bonfire and candy for the children. The idea was to keep would-be pranksters too busy to cause trouble.
Anoka was not alone. By the 1920s, some communities had Halloween parades and citywide parties. In the 1930s, during the Great Depression, Halloween vandalism was a worry in many cities, and organized, candy-centered activities were one way to answer it.
How trick-or-treat arrived
The phrase trick or treat is older than many people think, and the earliest known printing isn’t American. It appeared in the Sault Daily Star of Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, on Nov. 1, 1917. The paper wrote: “Tricks or treats you could hear the gangs call out.”
New York word researcher Barry Popik found that line. He has noted that it is only the earliest printing he could find, not proof that the phrase began there. In 1917 the words meant just what they said: give us a treat, or we’ll play a trick.
Going door to door for candy did not become widespread in the United States until the 1930s. During World War II, sugar was rationed, and that cut into Halloween treats for a few years.
Remembering old Halloweens
Much of Halloween’s local history lives in old newspapers and in family memories. If you grew up in La Porte County, you may have heard stories from parents or grandparents about what Halloween was like before trick-or-treat bags. Those stories are worth writing down, and local historical societies are glad to hear them.
The old pranks make good stories now, but they cost real people real money and trouble at the time. Today the best Halloween tradition is a safe one: costumes that are easy to see in, slow driving on residential streets, and a porch light for the trick-or-treaters. For more local history, see our La Porte County history page, and for Halloween weather through the years, visit the almanac.
Questions
What was Halloween like in northwest Indiana in the early 1900s?
It was mostly a night of pranks. In Whiting, according to the Whiting-Robertsdale Historical Society’s review of the local paper, that meant stolen gates and door mats, broken windows and even soap on the streetcar rails.
When was “trick or treat” first printed?
The earliest known printing is in the Sault Daily Star of Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, on Nov. 1, 1917. It is the earliest found so far, not necessarily the first use.
Why did towns start Halloween parades?
To keep young people busy and cut down on pranks. Anoka, Minnesota, started a citywide celebration with a parade, a bonfire and candy in 1920 for that reason.
When did trick-or-treating become common?
Going door to door for candy did not become widespread in the United States until the 1930s. Sugar rationing during World War II cut into treats for a time.
Sources: Whiting-Robertsdale Historical Society: Halloween Has Always Brought Out the Wickedly in Whiting (2018) · SooToday: Origin of phrase 'trick or treat' in print traced to the Sault · Barry Popik: Trick or Treat · Mental Floss: Halloween Capital of the World, Anoka, Minnesota · Star Tribune: Anoka and its Halloween celebration · Wisconsin Historical Society: a 1922 Halloween costume and the holiday's history · Heinz History Center: Halloween history and World War II · Scripps News: How trick-or-treating became a Halloween tradition · History.com: How Donald Duck and Peanuts saved trick-or-treating