One of the most widely-celebrated holidays in the USA is Halloween. This favored holiday is fraught with costumes, decorations, and parties galore! An event that was historically honored and/or feared is now really just an excuse to dress up and party, not to mention, go Trick or Treating! A major player in this autumn game is the carved pumpkin, also known as the Jack O’ Lantern. Did you know using pumpkins for Jack O’ Lanterns is a modern practice? The historic plants our predecessors used to carve were rutabagas, gourds, potatoes, beets, and turnips!

Below are a few examples of the frightening faces that artistic carvers can make from turnips.

People in the U.K. didn’t have today’s popular choice for Jack O’ Lanterns, namely pumpkins, because pumpkins grow exclusively in North America. (Little-known fact: pumpkins are classified as a fruit. But I digress.) According to numerous historical sites, ancient observers of All Hallow’s Eve hollowed out their root vegetable of choice and carved them into scary faces. I imagine that must have been difficult due to their small size and hardness.

Once the carvers had a satisfactory work of art, they put a candle or lit ember inside to make the face glow, and placed these lit root vegetables by their doorways to scare away evil spirits. I find it interesting that they left their doors open to welcome the spirits of their ancestors. Apparently, only wicked, non-family ghosts were frightened away by these glowing veggie faces. During the Victorianspo Era, these became known as Spook Lights. 

Many sources claim that carving root vegetables into Jack O’ Lanterns was originally an Irish and Scottish tradition, however, it spread all over the UK and later the US. Now Jack O’ Lanterns are made out of any variety of natural and man-made materials and are lit with candles, battery-operated lights, and electric bulbs, giving a spooky glow to set the proper mood.

So the next time you carve a large, soft pumpkin, be grateful you aren’t trying to create scary art out of a much harder, smaller vegetable. And give a thought to your ancestors who have passed on. Perhaps they’ll pay you a visit on Halloween night while you’re handing out candy to trick-or-treaters.

All Hallows Eve during Regency England is the setting for my newest novel, A Ghost of a Chance. 

A lost soul looking for her brother…

Osanne has given up on love and has instead poured her attention on searching for her missing brother, keeping the neighborhood miscreants from hurting someone, and finishing her musical composition. When a captivating stranger comes to town on All Hallows Eve, she dares to hope for more than her endlessly lonely existence.

A tormented war hero looking for redemption…

Unable to flee the memories of war, Rafe spends his days helping the men who served under his command to adjust to civilian life. Perhaps if he helps them all, he can atone for some of his past failures. When he stops for the night at a small English village celebrating All Hallows Eve, he meets an enchanting young lady unlike any other and suspects that what he wanted all along was not only redemption but true happiness.

They must find the courage to choose love over fear…

It will take a test of faith and valor to overcome the barriers between their worlds, let go of their past mistakes, and navigate the shadow world between life and death to beg for another chance from the Angel of Death.