Halloween 1906

I came across an article about Lucien Hayo Thaden and a Halloween party he attended in 1906. When reading this article, I was struck by how Halloween parties have come through a vast evolution. Here is the article:

"A Halloween party was given by Miss Irene C. Boyne at her home at 204 H street northwest. Games were played and vocal selections, accompanied by Miss Boyne on the piano, were rendered by Miss Edna Kaiser of New York city, Miss Bessie Hurt of this city and Mr. J. H. Brotbeck of Chattanooga, Tenn. Mr. William W. Norris gave several solos on the piano. Dancing then followed, after which supper was served in the dining room, which was very artistically decorated with autumn leaves and jack o'lanterns. Those present were Mrs. I. B. Boyne, Mrs. A. H. Anadale, Misses Frances Moyer, Edna Kaiser, Virginia Raines, Irene C. Boyne, Bessie Hart and Lillie V. McCullum; Messrs. William W. Norris, Lucien H. Thaden and Michael Holleran, and Edmund E. Hellerstadt, J. H. Brotbeck and Wells H. Hall of Chattanooga, Tenn."-- Evening Star [Washington, D.C.], 4 Nov 1906.

What a lovely little gathering. I learned a few things about Halloween parties of yesteryear from the Firelands History Website blog (https://firelands.wordpress.com/tag/halloween-1906).

“Halloween at the beginning of the 20^th Century was as much about romantic love as it was about ghosts and goblins . . . .

. . . [M]ost young men and women . . . would attend parties hosted by the young women in their homes. The women would treat their guests to a meal and the young people would entertain themselves with dancing and games. As with most social events of the day, activities at Halloween parties were a way for young men and women to flirt and gauge the suitability of potential romantic partners while under the watchful gaze of their parents.

The games especially were a great way to get acquainted. Some are familiar today, like bobbing for apples. A variation of that game popular at the time was called Snap Apple, where boys and girls would attempt to bite an apple suspended from the ceiling by a string. The first to succeed would be the first to marry. Another game involved the host hiding a dime, a ring and a thimble in mashed potatoes or a similar food. The guest who found the ring in his portion would be destined to marry soon, the one with the thimble would spend his or her life alone, and the lucky one to get the dime would have good fortune.”

I also learned through the Heritage Square blog (https://heritagesquarephx.org/news/halloween-hullabaloo/) that it was common at these parties to have “bubbling pots of candy that would be poured over a plate of nuts, then cooled, broken into smaller pieces and eaten.” We call this peanut brittle today. They also ate candied and carameled apples.

"Halloween parties had live entertainment – in the form of parlor games, fortune telling (likely with someone dressed up as a gypsy or witch to play the part), and readings. The parlor games involved many that would supposedly foretell a young person’s marital future, including pouring molten lead from a spoon into a pan of cold water, and the ensuing 'fanciful' shape would reveal the kind of husband a young lady would later marry."

Lucien was 20 years old at the time. Perhaps this was a reunion of high school friends or maybe a collection of young people who lived in the neighborhood. I notice none of his brothers attended so this was definitely Lucien's circle of friends. 

The postcard image came from http://tracystoys.blogspot.com/2013/10/antique-halloween-postcard-apple-bobbing.html.