Old Chester, PA: Holidays & Special Events: Halloween

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Some Halloween recollections gleaned from the Guest Book at "The Newsstand":

"They used to have parades right thru town. That might have been what the Ladies auxillary was marching in. I was in one right behind the horse section."
- Florence Knott

"LAST NIGHT BEING HALLOWEEN I REMEMBERED HALLOWEENS AS A CHILD IN SUN VILLAGE. WE MUST HAVE COVERED AT LEAST 70 HOUSES AND HAD TONS OF CANDY. I REMEMBER EVERY YEAR GOING TO A HOUSE ON REMINGTON STREET I THINK THE NAME WAS BARBER, AND THEY GAVE OUT HOMEMADE APPLE TAFFIES THEY ALSO TOOK HOME MOVIES OF EVERYONE THAT CAME TO THEIR HOUSE. IT WOULD BE AMAZING TO SEE THOSE MOVIES TODAY NEEDLESS TO SAY EVERYONE WENT TO THEIR HOUSE TO GET THAT CANDIED APPLE. BACK THEM HALF THE FUN OF HALLOWEEN WAS THE PEOPLE HAD TO GUESS WHO YOU WERE. IF YOU COULD DRESS UP GOOD ENOUGH TO FOOL THEM YOU USUALLY GOT EXTRA CANDY. ONE NIGHT I WAS IN THE ALLY BETWEEN JOHNSON ST AND BALWIN STREET A FRIEND AND A GROUP OF BIG KIDS CAME BY US, ONE OF THEM GRABBED MY CANDY BAG I WAS DRESSED AS A LITTLE BASEBALL PLAYER AND WAS CARRYING A BAT SO I WACKED HIM OVER THE HEAD WITH MY BAT HE DROPPED THE BAG AND WE GRABBED AND RAN FOR OUR LIVES!!! NEVER KNEW WHO THAT PERSON WAS. BUT I BET HE CHECKED OUT WHAT KIDS HAD IN THEIR HAND BEFORE HE TRIED TO GRAB ANOTHER BAG."
- MARY LOU JONES, LANCASTER

"Speaking of Halloween, let me tell you about this. One year a few of us urchins (in the 1940s) went out to "trick or treat" and we thought we'd venture "uptown" in the "upper class neighborhood" where the pickins may be better. We went to the Wetherall (sp?) mansion and rang the bell. A lady answered, politely invited this rag-tag group (about 5 of us) of 10 year olds in. She said NO ONE had come to her house at all that night. She took us through a tour of the "mansion" gave us a bagful of goodies and 25 cents each! God bless her. I think she owned the place."
- Duffy

"Duffy---Here's a bookend to your story. This was either 1948 or 49 on Halloween a couple of us from Madison St by the river left the neighborhood (no treats there) and went for better pickens. We also stopped at the same mansion (on 19th or 20th & Providence) where a real lady sat with us while we ate cookies and drank apple cider (which none of us had ever had before). Can't say we were as well received at our other stops in that neighborhood."
- Dan, CHS 54

"Another great memory about Halloween in Chester in the 50's ..... remember how the stores in downtown Chester would paint the display windows. I think art students from the high school would do them for some kind of contest. it was such a treat to go downtown and see them"
- Mary Lou, Lancaster

Share your own stories and recollections about Halloween in Chester!

Halloween Recollections:

Name: Mary Ann Littley Bell
Email: mbell37505@aol.com
Residing: Bartlett, TN
Date: 01/13/2008
Time: 12:07:28 AM

Recollections

Mary Lou, I had the privilage of painting the Kinney Shoe Store window in 1960. Most of us were from Smedley Jr. High School. Susan Thomas actually composed the picture, which was a witch trying on shoes. I ended up doing quite a bit of the painting because Sue couldn't get downtown until school let our. If your grades were good you would spend the whole afternoon downtown painting those windows,but if they were marginal you couldn't start painting until after school let out. Sue and I won honorable mention. We were pretty proud of ourselves. Mary Ann

Name: Mary Ann Littley Bell
Email: mbell37505@aol.com
Residing: Bartlett, TN
Date: 01/13/2008
Time: 12:07:15 AM

Recollections

Name: Mary Ann Littley Bell
Email: mbell37505@aol.com
Residing: Bartlett, TN
Date: 01/13/2008
Time: 12:06:49 AM

Recollections

Name: Diane Harrison
Email: dharrison0805@hotmail.com
Residing: Easton, Md
Date: 08/30/2007
Time: 01:28:41 PM

Recollections:

I went to William Penn Elementary School in the 1960's. I remember for Halloween, we would dress in our costumes and parade around the neighborhoods, Mccafferty village and Buckman Village.