Waterboro Public Library, P.O. Box 308, East Waterboro, Maine / Phone: 207.247.3363 / contact webmaster /
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Last modified: 21/Oct/2005/
© M. Williams 1996-2005
HALLOWEEN RESOURCES
- The History of Halloween (Salon)
- Three-page magazine article (Oct. 2002) about the real -- non-pagan, non-ancient -- history of Halloween, which took the
form we now know in the U.S. in 1929.
- Halloween (h2g2)
- Fabulous (very readable, funny) backgrounder on Halloween, with info on the history,
trick-or-treat, Halloween entertainment, haunted houses. With links
to more articles on black cats, ghosts, horror films, wax lips,
evil (and subsequent redeeming features thereof),
things that make your skin crawl, scary tales for halloween,
more. Written by Brits.
- Samhain (Witches' Halloween) (h2g2)
- Good article on the history, customs, spells and divinations of Samhain.
- Dark Side of the Net: Halloween: Origins of Halloween Links (Dark Side of the Net)
- Extensive (but not annotated) list of links concerning the origins and history of Halloween.
- Census Bureau's Halloween Data (U.S. Government)
- Census-derived data on number of 'potential trick-or-treaters' (5- to 14-year-olds
in the U.S. in 2002); number of 'potential stops for trick-or-treaters';
total U.S. pumpkin production; Halloweeny-sounding town and city names in the U.S.;
candy and costume data. 2004 feature.
- Annie's Halloween History Page
- Written from a Christian perspective, covers the Celts and Druids, All Saints Day, regional and
U.S. customs, witches and Wicca.
- The Real Origins of Halloween (Isaac Bonewits - Neopagan)
- Extensive, well-written, and detailed article refuting the claims of some Christians against Halloween. Music.
- Halloween and Its Christian Roots (St. Anthony Messenger, Faith-Filled Family)
- Halloween from a Catholic perspective. Short history, and sectons
on Carving the Turnip?; The Tale of the Jack-o'-lantern; Family Time;
For Teens: Ways to Continue Enjoying Halloween; For Kids: Making Your Own Jack-o'-Lantern;
and resources for learning more about Halloween. On the same site:
Witches, Ghosts
and Magic: What Catholics Believe, written for teens.
- History of Halloween (History Channel)
- One-page history of Halloween from the ancient Celtic festival of Samhain.
- History of the Jack O'Lantern (Pumpkin Nook)
- Monsters and Faeries Page (Christine O'Keeffe's Halloween)
- Information on Hags, Goblins and Hobgoblins, Death Omens, Shapeshifters, Sea Monsters,
Giants/Gnomes/Dragons/Unicorns, Trooping Faeries, Leprechauns, Mer-people,
Queens, Dagda, Kings, and Faery Charms.
- Why Bother To Save Halloween? (Richard Seltzer - Tricks or Treats)
- Article focuses on the neighborliness and community-building aspects of Halloween.
- 10 Reasons Christians Should Not Celebrate Halloween (J. Kerby Anderson - Probe Ministries)
- The Dark Side of Halloween
- Discusses Halloween in the context of Christianity. Argues that Halloween focuses on
violence, fear, and the occult. The history of Halloween, and the "heroes of Halloween" -- Dracula
and witches -- are also considered.
- "Halloween:
Hallowed or Harmful?" (Sandton Bible Church, South Africa)
- Lengthy article against participation in Halloween, with Biblical
references. Lists five alternative activities, including celebrating All
Saints Day.
- Annie's Alternatives to Halloween
- Describes many alternative ways to celebrate Oct. 31.
- Haunted Halloween (Kate.Net)
- Everything you need to celebrate: History/Facts, Teachers' Lesson Plans,
Safety, Pets and Halloween, Cards, Food, Pumpkins and Carving, Decorations/Party Ideas,
Crafts, Costumes, Games/Puzzles/Quizzes, Activities and Other Fun Stuff, Stories and Poems,
Humor, Music/Sounds/Carols, Clipart and Backgrounds, Icons and Cursors,
Screensavers/Wallpapers/, Fonts, Scary Stuff (not for kids).
- Halloween Customs (Christine O'Keeffe's Halloween)
- Halloween customs in Britain and Ireland (rhyming, jack o'lanterns, bonfires, mischief night, etc.),
in Wales, in America; All Soul's Day in Britain, in Scotland and Ireland, in America;
and El Día de Los Muertos (Mexico).
- Celebrating Hallowmas (Waverly Fitzgerald, School of the Seasons)
- Focuses on pagan rituals (rituals for honoring the dead, divining the future) and on the main theme of Halloween, death. Also discusses
the Mexican holiday, The Day(s) of the Dead. Nicely written, if this is your thing.
Links to recipes and crafts.
- Gory Goodies (A to Z Home's Cool)
- Recipes for Witches Brew, Halloween Punch, Bloody Popcorn, Cheese Eyeballs,
Brain Dip, Spider Bread, Tongues on Toast, Roasted Bat, Swamp Slime, and more!
- Pumpkin Recipes Galore (Pumpkin Nook)
- Desserts, snacks, main dishes, beer, marmalade, and tips on canning.
- Halloween Recipes (Christine O'Keeffe's Halloween)
- Recipes for Coffee Punch, Pumpkin Ice Cream, Caramel Apples, Colcannon,
Candied Apples, and Pumpkin Pancakes.
- Vegan Halloween Party (Vegetarians in Paradise)
- Halloween history, decor ideas, about a dozen recipes for ghoulish and festive vegan party food.
- Halloween Party Ideas (LovingYou.Com)
- Party Tips; an Autumn Nights party for two; a Candlelight Hallow's Eve party (small to medium group); and
a Formal Masked Ball (medium to large group).
- Pumpkin Carving (Pumpkin Nook)
- Tips for prep and cleaning, safety, carving (with patterns), making the pumpkin last.
- Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Pumpkins (JG Bell)
- Prevent pumpkin mutilation! Read this before you carve!
- Halloween Games (Christine O'Keeffe's Halloween)
- Halloween Maze Puzzle, Party Planning Hints, and party games: Apple Peel Game,
Hot Potato, Fortune Telling, Bobbing for Apples, Snapdragon, and Candle Divining.
- Halloween Movie List (LovingYou.Com)
- List of about 50 movies associated with Halloween, a few with links to reviews.
- Alfred Hitchcock: The Master of Suspense
- All about filmmaker Alfred Hitchcock: Biography, filmography, awards/honors, cameos, Hitchcock on TV.
- Tunes from the Crypt (WGUC Radio)
- Playlist of about 30 spooky works of classical music, suitable for Halloween. Music.
- Halloween Carols (Not Just For Kids)
- Many use Christmas carol tunes.
- Things That Make your Skin Crawl (h2g2)
- Not limited to stricly Halloween-type things, but an interesting and readable article all the same.
Some include hairy warts, warm toilet seats, pruny fingers, maggots,
the entire microscopic world, chairs being scraped across marble,
soup slurping, people touching your belly button, the word "special,"etc.
- Ways To Confuse Trick-Or-Treaters
- Some of these are hilarious and just might work.
- Halloween at Home (A to Z Home's Cool)
- Lessons about conquering fears, neighborliness, civic pride, dramatics of Halloween,
mathematics of candy, anatomy (skeletons), and horror stories (Poe).
- Halloween Lesson Plan (TeacherVision.com)
- For PreK-12. Lots of links to resources for teaching about Halloween: 'Explore the
literature, customs, and history of Halloween, using the lessons below.'
Resources in music, health, math, art, science, language arts. Printables and
references, such as Halloween Safety Tips, Halloween Games, and
Last-Minute Halloween Ideas. (May require you to watch an ad.)
- Lesson Plan: History of Halloween (TeacherLink - Jill Neitz)
- For 1st and 2nd graders. Focus is on the jack-o'-lantern. Activities for math, writing,
sequencing and prediction skills, history.
- Pump Up the Curriculum with Pumpkins! (Education World)
- Ideas for using pumpkins in the traditional school subjects.
- Pumpkin Exploration: An Elementary Activity (Southwest Educational Development Laboratory)
- Science and math lesson using pumpkins: "In this activity students in cooperative groups search,
suggest, question, predict, and estimate the number of seeds in a set of pumpkins."
- Bats Resource Pages (Gander Academy - Newfoundland, Canada)
- More than 20 activities, lesson plan ideas, book lists, etc., related to learning about bats.
- Principles of Aeronautics: Bats (Cislunar Aerospace, Inc.)
- Beginner, intermediate, and advanced activities (K-8).
- Halloween Booklists for Children (MyShelf.Com)
- Listed by age: Preschool, Ages 4-8, Ages 9-12, and Teen/YA. Author and title listed only. About 200 books listed.
- Themed Book Reviews: Halloween (ChildrensLit.Com)
- Reviews of children's Halloween books, with ISBN, age range, price, and publication information.
Over 55 reviews.
- Simply Shocking: Selected Horror Fiction (Chicago Public Library)
- For adults and older teens. Author, title, one-line summary. Organized by topic:
Terrors, Monsters, Dreadful, Vampires, Witches. Companion book list is CPL's
Horrors! Selected Supernatural
Fiction, with novels and story collections organized into these topics:
Witches and Demons, Ghosts, Vampires, Monsters, Werewolves, and Miscellaneous and Nameless Terrors.
- Halloween Fiction for Children Booklist (Waterboro Public Library)
- Annotated links to lists of fiction titles about Halloween or with a Halloween setting.