Parker Brothers Jack-O-Lantern Target game, circa 1914. Made of
cardboard and wood, this home version of a carnival game
allowed Halloween partygoers to knock over scarecrow and
pumpkin heads with a ball for a prize.
"We have two original Harry Roseland paintings. He was very
important for the fact that he painted black people as people and
not as caricatures. Roseland did a whole series of the black
fortune-teller with the Gibson-type girls, and we have two of those
paintings," notes Apkarian-Russell.
Fortune-tellers play an integral part of this holiday, and the
museum houses several items, including teacups, games and
booklets pertaining to this mysterious practice. One of the more
charming objects is a deviled egg plate from the 1930s that
features fortunes printed within the concave bowls that hold the
eggs. When the tray was passed around, people would take an egg
and read their fortune.
Contrary to what some might assume, the museum is not a haunted
house where skeletons pop out from behind hidden doors or
high-pitched screams pierce darkened hallways - this house of
treasures takes its mission seriously. Even the building, which
might seem a bit intimidating at first, is quite harmless. It is
located in the former Boggs Run Elementary School that was built
in 1929 to educate the children of this former mining town. One
would expect an abandoned school to have a few spirits hanging
around, but, according to Apkarian-Russell, this is not the case.
Work is underway to renovate the building's façade into what
Apkarian-Russell amusingly refers to as "gothic pile." "We are in
the process of adding gargoyles, green men, angels, Pan figures,
nymphs, angels and other assorted items to the building,"
explains the Halloween Queen, in an effort to present the holiday
in all its splendor both inside and out. Even a circa 1890s
doorknocker has been secured to the front door for vintage gothic
effect.
The Salem Witch Trials of 1692 are crucial historical events that
deserves prominence in such archives. "We have a tremendous
collection of Salem witch collectibles that show how important it
was to American history," she said.
The Castle Halloween Museum features the works of Robert Burns,
who, according to the curator, can be considered the father of
Halloween. "Burns wrote two poems which are very important to
Halloween in this country. His poem 'Tam O'Shanter' is probably
the definitive ghost story poem and then 'Halloween' was about
how the day was celebrated and the importance of Halloween back
then," she said.
"When the Celts came over to this country, they brought Burns's
poems with them. At the harvest festival they would emulate some
of the things in the poem 'Halloween,' like the fortune-telling.
They would also recite the two poems, and so as other Celtic
groups like the British and Irish came here, they also picked up
on those poems and they added their traditions. The Germans
brought the Black Forest traditions in, the talking trees and
those things," she said.
German-made composition Pumpkin Head Veggie doll with
articulated arms and legs, circa 1905.
Still under renovation is the museum's library, scheduled to
open in 2006. It will house thousands of books and will be
available by appointment only to researchers interested in such
topics as the paranormal, witchcraft and genocide. It has 1,500
books on antiques alone. Also included will be science fiction
books and many children's books centering on fantasy, witches and,
of course, Halloween. "We have books dating back to the
1690s/1700s," notes Apkarian-Russell. "We've got broadsides and
paper items that have been framed up, Mother Shipton's work and her
prophecies."
Along with objects and books spanning several centuries, visitors
bear witness to this ever-evolving holiday. They can trace
Halloween from its early fears and rituals to more modern times
when the holiday began to morph into clearer perspective for
today's visitors.
"The trick or treating and the parties that we know of doesn't
start until the Albany Carnival around 1900. That's when society
comes in and takes it from the rural people who had been
celebrating it. People would go from house to house and partook
of their food and brought things because it was the night of
sharing and showing how much they had and how good the winter
would be. Friends would come and they would have their ghost
stories and their parties, but it was also for people to eat.
When poor people came, they would be given little packages of
food to take and it was a way of sharing one's wealth - and food
was wealth," says Apkarian-Russell.
While there are ample displays of the boxed costumes of recent
memory, the museum houses a wonderful collection of vintage
outfits. As Apkarian-Russell explains, "The papier mache costumes
have a history. Dennison Manufacturing was the first company to
really start pushing the making of them. They did books, like the
Dennison Party Book and the Dennison Bogie Book,
and these little booklets would not only tell you about the
costumes and things that you could purchase, but they would also
tell you how to make and decorate with them."
Among the more precious items in the museum's collection, the
early costumes stand out for their unique styles and personalized
touches. There are several black and orange dresses that were
made up with wacky little hats. These handmade outfits are
decorated with the original Dennison stickers of witches and
black cats. Some have been adorned with bells - reminiscent of
another tradition that can be traced to the origins of this
holiday. Bells, like masks and even that jack-o'-lantern sitting
on your front porch, originated to scare off the evil spirits.
They are all part of the various disguises so the spirits will
not know who you really are.
In modern times, Halloween has become more about candy than
rituals passed down through Burns. Candy containers played a
large role in the holiday, as well as in the museum's collection.
Jack-o'-lanterns, pumpkin-headed policemen and witches bearing
sweet gifts under their heads or hats became popular among
children at the turn of the Twentieth Century.
As Apkarian-Russell explains, "Candy containers began before
1900. The Christmas ones were much earlier and they were made for
hanging on the tree. Where the celebration, commercially, of
Halloween is later than Christmas, it picked up its usages and
different items like the candy containers."
A paper fan with paper hair from the 1940s and a composition
and wood witch noisemaker, circa 1915.
During that golden era of Halloween, the holiday became as
gleefully anticipated as Christmas. "The candy containers started
off on the tables for each guest, along with the place cards so
that each person could have a little takeaway gift," says
Apkarian-Russell. Each candy container is as unique as the next in
a variety of forms. "You start with the really heavy composition
ones - those made of combinations of plaster, paper, chalk and some
other items - and then much later on, they go into cardboard and
papier mache.
"The early ones weren't so much filled with hard candies but
little homemade things. I've never found an early one with any
residue in it, leftover candy and stuff like that; later ones,
yes, but not the early ones. So I'm never quite sure what they
put in them, candywise. There's not really a lot of room in them,
so you wouldn't want to waste space with a napkin or cellophane
or something like that."
Currently, along with various artifacts and holiday memorabilia,
the museum has exhibitions highlighting Harry Potter as well as
Tim Burton's A Nightmare Before Christmas that features a
place called Halloween Town in the film.
"We'll be having changing exhibitions," says Apkarian-Russell,
noting, "At Easter I want to do a large exhibition featuring
Easter witches and Norwegian trolls. The Easter witches come at
Easter and they sit on your roof, drink coffee and they bring you
good luck. And that's how you get your kitchen witches. Edward
Gorey did a tremendous amount of books and illustrations that
were humorous but also ominous and somewhat sinister. His
drawings were used in the opening of the Public Television show
Mystery."
In the meantime, however, there is something unusual to see at
every turn, including the troves of candy containers and boxes
with advertising on them. "The tin ones are from about 1905, and
some of the cardboard and papier mache boxes are from between
1905 and 1910. Some of them have the store names on them; some
are decorated on the cellophane and some still have their
advertising on them. There are also numerous examples of posters
that show how the candy was sold, much of which was festively
decorated little witches or jack-o'-lanterns on the boxes.
We want our elder visitors to say, "'Oh my God, I remember those
from when I was a kid!' And I want the kid who's 5 years old to
come away with a nostalgic feeling for Halloween," admits the
Halloween Queen of her castle.
The Castle Halloween Museum is at 577 Boggs Run Road. For
information, 304-233-1031 or www.castlehalloween.com.
