Halloween-themed haunted houses first emerged during the Great Depression as ways to distract young tricksters. Groups of families would deck out their basements with home made scary decorations. Then they would hold “house-to-house” parties, where the children would travel from basement to basement, experiencing different scary scenes.
Trails Of Terror
A 1937 party pamphlet is quoted in Lisa Morton’s book “Trick or Treat: A History of Halloween” which describes how parents designed “trails of terror” to spook the children.
Trick or Treat examines the origins and history of Halloween as well as exploring its current global popularity. The book takes readers on a journey from the spectacular to the macabre, making it a must for anyone who wants to peep behind the mask to see the real past and present of this ever more popular holiday.