According to historians, the holiday of Halloween is derived from an ancient Celtic festival known as Samhain and was held to celebrate the end of the harvest season. Ancient Gaelic people believed that on the evening of October 31, the worlds of the living and the dead would converge. . Masks and costumes were worn to imitate or appease the evil spirits of the deceased.

For children, the earliest recorded instance to go door-to-door wearing costumes and asking for either treats or else to play a trick on the unsuspecting neighbor in North America was in 1911. The phrase “trick or treat” emerged in the 1930s, and as the custom received attention from magazines, television, and even Walt Disney in the middle of the century, the custom grew even more popular. This year, CNN reports, Americans will spend $6.9 billion on candy, costumes, and decorations for Halloween.

Carved pumpkins or jack-o’-lanterns originally evolved from turnip lanterns. In the 1800s in England, children would carry turnip lanterns door-to-door while they begged for biscuits or “soul cakes”, recited prayers and sang songs to honor the dead during the first two days of November forAll Saints and All Souls Days. By the end of the century, the children took to carving faces in the lanterns, a practice that evolved into the great pumpkin carving tradition that is now associated with Halloween.

In Park City, Halloween has its traditions, too. Parents bring their costumed children and pets to Main Street between 3:00 and 5:00 p.m. on Halloween night as merchants dispense tasty treats to all of the little witches and goblins. At 4:30 p.m., families with pups, on their leash and in costume, meet at the Post Office to prepare for the annual “Howl-O-Ween” Pet Parade that takes place from 5:00 to 5:30 p.m. and ceremoniously strolls down Main to 9th Street. After you experience, all that Park City has to offer, start your own Halloween family tradition in the beautiful fall setting at Promontory Club.