Halloween 2026 by Community Source

October 27, 2026

Olean Times Herald | The Bradford Era

Shadows of the Past: Fascinating origins of Halloween symbols and legends

Every October, neighborhoods transform into eerie wonderlands of glowing jack-o’-lanterns, grinning skeletons, and mischievous black cats. While these iconic symbols feel essential to the modern celebration of Halloween, most of them carry ancient histories rooted in mythology, folklore, and practical survival. Understanding where these traditions came from reveals how centuries of human superstition merged into the holiday we know today.

The True Story of Jack-o’-Lanterns Today, carving pumpkins is a cherished autumn family activity, but the tradition originated across the Atlantic with a much more frightening tale. The custom stems from the Irish legend of “Stingy Jack,” a notorious trickster who allegedly trapped the Devil and bargained for his soul not to go to hell. When Jack eventually died, he was barred from both heaven and hell, doomed to wander the earth for eternity. According to the myth, the Devil gave him a single burning coal to light his way, which Jack placed inside a hollowed-out turnip.

October 27, 2026

When Irish immigrants brought this folklore to North America in the 19th century, they discovered that native pumpkins were far larger and much easier to carve than turnips. The glowing gourd quickly became a staple of American Halloween lore, originally intended to ward off wandering spirits.

Witches, Cauldrons and Broomsticks

The stereotypical image of a witch — complete with a pointed hat, a bubbling cauldron, and a flying broomstick—has deep roots in ancient European paganism and rural folklore. Long before Halloween, wise women and herbalists used large cast-iron cauldrons to brew medicines, teas, and dyes. Over time, fear of the unknown and shifting

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Olean Times Herald | The Bradford Era

Shadows of the Past religious landscapes transformed these everyday cooking vessels into mythical instruments for brewing dark potions. Similarly, the broomstick has agricultural roots. In pre-industrial Europe, farmers practiced fertility rituals where they would leap and dance astride broomsticks in the fields under the moonlight to encourage their crops to grow tall. By the Middle Ages, superstitious folklore had twisted these agrarian rites into stories of magical nocturnal flight. The iconic pointed hat, meanwhile, is often linked to the distinct headwear worn by certain religious or merchant groups in medieval Europe, which later became associated with marginalized or accused figures.

Olean Times Herald | The Bradford Era

Creepy Crawlies and Unlucky Cats

Animals have always played a central role in Halloween symbolism, most notably black cats, bats, and spiders. In medieval Europe, black cats unfortunately became targets of dark superstition, falsely accused of being witches’ familiars or shape-shifters in disguise. Conversely, in other cultures, crossing paths with a black cat was considered a sign of good fortune. Bats and spiders earned their spooky reputations primarily through their association with darkness, caves, and abandoned spaces. In ancient Celtic traditions, autumn bonfires drew vast swarms of insects, which in turn attracted bats—solidifying the winged mammals as permanent fixtures of the season’s eerie aesthetic.

Bridging the Worlds

Ultimately, the symbols of Halloween endure because they connect us to ancient human traditions. What began as ways to mark the changing of the seasons, honor ancestors, and explain the mysteries of the dark winter months has evolved into a playful celebration of fright. As you light your pumpkin porch light this October, you are keeping a centuries-old tradition alive, bridging the gap between ancient folklore and modern fun.

October 27, 2026

Trunk or Treats booming this Halloween season

Trunk or treats and special events are lined up for the next two weekends leading into Halloween. The following events are free and open to the public for participation, and are organized by date and time.

Oct. 22 • The Wellsville YMCA will host a trunk or treat from 5-8 p.m. at Riverwalk Plaza. • Crosstown Alliance Church in Wellsville, at 450 Highland Ave., will host a trunk or treat from 5-8 p.m.

Oct. 23 • Trick-or-treating at Absolut Care of Allegan from 4-6 p.m. The public is invited. 4

October 27, 2026

Oct. 24

• A Halloween costume parade and trick-or-treating will be hosted at 11 a.m. at Tops Friendly Markets, West State St., Olean. • The Shops on Union will host trick-or-treating from 11:30 a.m.-2 p.m. Costume judging will be held at 1:30 p.m. • Crosstown Alliance Church will host a trunk-or-treat from 1-3 p.m. at the church, 1513 Main St. • The Salamanca Rehabilitation and Nursing Center will host its Fall Fest from 1-4 p.m. at the center, 451 Broad St. • A 4 p.m. trunk or treat will be

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Trunk or Treats held at the Seneca-Iroquois National Museum, 82 W. Hetzel St., Salamanca. Call (716) 945-1760 to sign up for a trunk.

Oct. 25 • J&E Awareness will host a trunk or treat from 3-6 p.m. at The Pines Healthcare and Rehabilitation Center, 2245 W. State St. • Eaton Power Systems will host a trunk or treat at 5 p.m. at the facility, 1648 Dugan Road, town of Olean. • Christ United Methodist Church will host a trunk or treat from 6-7:30 p.m. at the church, 633 Linwood Ave., Olean.

Oct. 28 • Cattaraugus-Little Valley Central School District will host a trunk

Olean Times Herald | The Bradford Era

or treat from 5-6:15 p.m. at the school bus circle in Cattaraugus. • SUNY Jamestown Community College will host a trunk or treat from 5-7 p.m. in the Library & Liberal Arts Center parking lot off North Barry Street in Olean. In case of inclement weather, the event will move inside to the College Center Student Union.

Oct. 29 • HERO Halloween party and zombie glow dance will be held from 5:30-8:30 p.m. at the Allegany Community Center, 3677 Administration Drive, Salamanca.

Oct. 30 • Trick-or-treating at the Bradford Manor will be held from 3-5 p.m. Candy donations will be accepted

until the day before. • The Cattaraugus County Fair is hosting a trunk or treat from 5-7 p.m. at the fairgrounds, 501 Erie St., Little Valley. To sign up to host a trunk, email info@cattarauguscofair.com. • Foster Brook Creamery will hold its Boo Bash from 5:30 to 7 p.m. Oct. 30. • The City of Salamanca will host its Frightfully Fun Festival starting with a Halloween parade at 6 p.m., which begins at the Dudley and ends at Ray Evans Seneca Theater. A costume contest at the theater will follow at 6:15 p.m., and a trunk or treat will run from 6:30-8 p.m. at Jefferson Park.

Oct. 31 • Neighborhood School of Dance

will host a fall festival from noon5 p.m. at the 540 Event Center, 540 N. Union St., Olean. Presented by Just Vibes Events, the free admission event includes kids’ activities, vendors, a costume contest and door prizes for the adults. • Enchanted Mountain Garden Club will host a scarecrow trick or treat from 2-3:30 p.m. along Main Street in Allegany, with local businesses participating. • The Cuba First Baptist Church will host its Fall Fest from 4:305:30 p.m. at the church, 17 South St., followed by a trunk or treat from 6-7 p.m. • The Keystone Riders will hold an ATV and side-by-side parade in Duke Center, with lineup starts

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October 27, 2026

Trunk or Treats IT’S YOUR DECISION CHOOSE

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October 27, 2026

at 4:30 p.m. at the Otto Township Fire Hall, with the parade starting and ending at the site. Parade participants are invited to stay and take part in Trunk or Treat from 6-8 p.m. at the fire hall. • Trunk or Treat at the Kane Area Community Center is from 5-7 p.m. • The Shinglehouse Crosstown Alliance Church will host a harvest party at 5 p.m. at the church, 120 E. Honeoye St. • The Hinsdale Youth Commission and Hinsdale Fire Department will host a trunk or treat from 5-8 p.m. at the fire hall, 3832 Church St. • Open Arms Community Church in Bradford will hold Trunk or Treat at its new location at 71 Congress St., from 6 to 7:30 p.m. This year’s theme is fairy tales. • A trunk or treat will be held at the Smethport Fire Hall from 6-7:30 p.m. • A trunk or treat will be held from

6 to 7:30 p.m. at the Hazel Hurst Fire Hall parking lot. • The Allegany Fire Hall will host a candy check from 6-8 p.m. • Bridge of Hope’s Trunk or Treat will run from 6-8 p.m. at 109 Court St., Little Valley. The majority of communities traditionally host trick-or-treating from 6-8 p.m. on Halloween. Communities reporting official trick-or-treating times by press time include: • Belmont — 6-8 p.m. • Cuba — 6-8 p.m. • Eldred — 6-8 p.m. • Emporium — 6-8 p.m. • Friendship — 5-7 p.m. • Kane — 5:30-7:30 p.m. • Mount Jewett — 6-7:30 p.m. • Port Allegany — 6-8 p.m. Chestnut, Arnold and Broad streets will be closed to through traffic. • Smethport — 6 -7:30 p.m. Bank Street and Rosehill Avenue will be closed to vehicle traffic. • Wellsville — 6-8 p.m.

Olean Times Herald | The Bradford Era

Turn your home into a haunted house for Halloween People celebrate Halloween with the same zeal as Thanksgiving and Christmas. Decorating for Halloween has evolved over the years, and many homeowners now go to great lengths to turn their humble abodes into horrific haunts. Achieving a haunted house vibe is easier than one might think with some creative ideas.

Dim the lights

Turning down the lights immediately increases the spooky factor

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for Halloween. The mind may jump to its own conclusions about what is nestled in a shadowy corner or just around the bend. Turning off lights and relying on flickering candles or battery-operated lanterns will also hide any imperfections in your decor.

Direct light upwards Outdoors, position low-angle spotlights or floodlights pointing up

at walls or trees to cast long, harsh shadows that seem scary.

Board up the windows Tape lightweight painted cardboard strips across windows to mimic the look of an abandoned home. Scary shapes cut from cardboard or black paper can be taped inside of

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October 27, 2026

haunted house

windows and backlit by dim lights to create an eerie atmosphere.

Utilize fog machines If available, a fog machine near an entrance or in a hallway can provide a dense, disorienting haze. Again, it will reduce visibility, which can make a haunted house seem more frightening.

Tactile scares

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October 27, 2026

Hang loose, dark pieces of string, tattered scrap fabric or faux spider webs from ceilings so that they will lightly brush against passers-by in dark areas. A hidden fan can be positioned to blow a sudden, chilly draft across a doorway to mimic a passing spirit.

Haunted portraits Inexpensive thrift store frames can dress up eerie vintage photos or lenticular shifting images purchased

online. For a real fright, have someone pose behind a frame and actually move or reach out as visitors go by.

Creepy dolls

Gather tattered, old plastic dolls and hang or display them clustered together. Or paint them all white and splatter them with red paint to look like blood.

Obscured paths

Create blind corners and obscured paths so visitors cannot anticipate what is waiting ahead. Use dark sheets or black painter’s canvas taped securely to the ceiling. Position “actors” along the way to achieve jump scares.

Scary sounds

Place Bluetooth speakers throughout the haunted house to play a loop of screams, squeaky hinge noises or footsteps to keep guests off-kilter. A haunted house is expected for Halloween thrills, and it’s easy to create a spooky atmosphere with a little effort. Olean Times Herald | The Bradford Era

Dip into this at your Halloween party

Halloween is a wildly popular holiday, and that popularity extends to adults as well as kids. Halloween parties dot many a social schedule come late October, and parties mean food. While it’s customary to indulge in a few candied treats on Halloween, adults may want something with a little nutritional value as well. This “Halloween Dip With Carrots and Canapes” from Lines+Angles can make the perfect homemade party offering this Halloween.

Halloween Dip With Carrots and Canapes Makes 4 servings For the dip: • 3 large avocados, halved, pitted, peeled and diced • 1 garlic clove, minced • 1 lime, juiced • 1 dash Tabasco® sauce • 1⁄2 cup sour cream • 3⁄4 teaspoon kosher salt • 1⁄2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper Olean Times Herald | The Bradford Era

• 1 small handful cilantro, finely chopped To serve: • 6 large carrots • 1⁄2 cup sour cream • 1 handful stuffed olives, sliced • 1 handful seedless red grapes, sliced • 5 slivered almonds

1. For the dip: Mash together avocado, garlic, lime juice, Tabasco®, sour cream, salt, and pepper in a serving bowl until smooth. 2. Stir in chopped cilantro. Cover and chill until ready to serve. 3. To serve: Peel and cut two carrots into thick coins. Top with sour cream and then olive and grape slices. 4. Cut the remaining carrots into finger shapes. Use a paring knife to shave down their ends into nail beds. Make a thin incision at the end of the nail beds and slide a slivered almond into them to mimic fingernails. 5. Serve finger carrots in the prepared avocado dip with the carrot coins on the side. October 27, 2026

What to do with leftover Halloween candy Walk Ins

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What can be better than spending a day with friends, decked out in costume as you accumulate a mountain of sweet treats? That’s what trick-or-treaters do every Halloween, and sometimes the cache of candy is more than a person can consume in a lifetime. When October rolls into November and Thanksgiving is on the horizon, few people want to be staring at a witch’s cauldron full of chocolate bars. Rather than be wasteful and throw it away, they can utilize that candy in many different ways. • S’mores cookie: Turn miniature chocolate bars into a campfire treat with a cookie twist. Press

October 27, 2026

premade cookie dough into a round cast iron skillet and bake until cooked throughout. Add chopped up pieces of chocolate and marshmallows on top, and place under the broiler a few minutes until melted and gooey. Slice up to serve or dig in with spoons.

• Confectionary pizza: Purchase premade pizza dough or make your own. Bake the dough on a pan with no toppings. Afterwards, spread a layer of peanut butter or hazelnut spread on top. Then set up a fixings bar with various candies that others can add to their pizza slices. Options

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Halloween candy include chocolate candies, miniature pretzels, marshmallows, or gummy candies. • Stained glass cookies: Turn hard candies (like Jolly Ranchers®) into works of art. Fill sugar cookie cutouts with hard candies in the middle. When the cookies bake, the candies will melt and then turn soft after cooling. • Candy-topped brownies: Brownies are delicious on their own, but they’re even better with some embellishments. Mix chopped caramels into the batter, or add other candies for flavor and fun.

• Candy bark: Melt down any chocolate you may have and spread it on a baking sheet. Sprinkle chopped up leftover candy on top and allow to cool. Break into pieces for a homemade chocolate bark.