It’s October 1st, which means that many families and children are looking ahead to the end of the month- Halloween.
In Waukesha County, the Trick or Treat events are all going to be held on either Saturday, Oct. 25, Sunday Oct. 26, or Friday, Oct. 31. The municipalities celebrating on each day are listed here:
Saturday, October 25th
- Ashippun
- City of Delafield
- Dousman
- Eagle
- Elm Grove
- Ixonia
- Lac La Belle
- Lannon
- Lisbon
- Merton
- Nashotah
- New Berlin
- Oconomowoc
- Pewaukee
- Summit
- Sussex
- Watertown
Sunday, October 26th
- Genesee
- Mukwonago
- Vernon
- Wales
Friday, October 31st
- Big Bend
- Brookfield
- Butler
- East Troy
- Hartland
- Menomonee Falls
- Muskego
- Town of Delafield
- Waukesha
- Waterford
Each year, each municipality holds some version of Trick or Treat, a tradition that become common in America in the middle of the 1930s.
Over time, there have been changes in the way Trick or Treat events have been scheduled. In the mid 20th century through to the early 21st century, Trick or Treating usually always took place on Halloween night around dusk.
In the past few decades, this has practice changed. Due to community concerns, many areas have opted to move the date to the prior weekend, usually either Saturday or Sunday, and shift the time to the middle of the day.
This change occurred for two main reasons: Safety and scheduling conflicts.
Evening Halloween celebrations can be a major hazard. There is a heightened awareness of child pedestrian accidents, which are statistically more likely to occur after dark on Halloween.
Scheduling has also become an increasing problem. Coordinating between children’s after school schedules and parents’ work schedules has proved to be increasingly difficult.
Certain towns have passed ordinances to either end Trick or Treating at a certain time or to prohibit children of a certain age from participating to ensure their safety.
Major cities like Milwaukee and Detroit have attempted to encourage publicly sponsored activities so that children can celebrate Halloween all day long, giving them greater opportunities to engage with their communities.
There has also been a push from other to return to the traditional, standard ‘Evening of October 31st’ Trick or Treating that most people grew up with.
In 2018, President Donald Trump stated that he wished to make October 31st the official time for Trick or Treating. Thus far, his second term has been silent about the issue.
