Halloween Postcard With Beware The Night

Halloween, stemming from the ancient Celtic festival of Samhain and later integrated with Christian observances as All Hallows' Eve, evolved into a popular secular holiday in North America during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. This era saw its transformation from more solemn, superstitious practices to a celebrated occasion marked by social gatherings, costumes, and the playful invocation of supernatural themes. The imagery of spooks and ghosts, central to traditional folklore surrounding the night when the veil between worlds thinned, became a defining characteristic of the holiday.