Written by: Pleasure-Way
When people think of Halloween, images of children in costumes, jack-o’-lanterns glowing on porches, and bowls of candy usually come to mind. But for over a century, the holiday has also been celebrated in motion. The road has played a bigger role in Halloween than many realize, shaping everything from mischief to modern family camping traditions.
Early 1900s: Pranks on the move
As the automobile boom transformed North America in the early 1900s, Halloween took on a distinctly modern flavor. The holiday at that time leaned heavily on pranks and “licensed mischief”. Windows were soaped, fences dismantled, gates swapped between farms, and outhouses tipped. With cars increasingly parked along residential streets, they became new targets for Halloween trickery; mirrors were smeared with wax, hubcaps stolen, and sometimes entire vehicles were rolled into fields or up onto porches. Automobiles also gave groups of pranksters newfound mobility, allowing them to roam from block to block with greater reach than ever before. This new era of Halloween chaos pushed many towns and cities to rethink how to keep the holiday fun while limiting damage.
Post-war suburbs: the car era of Halloween
The solution came in the form of organized community events. One of the earliest and most famous examples is Anoka, Minnesota, which in 1920 branded itself the “Halloween Capital of the World” by hosting a massive parade, bonfires, and festivities to keep kids out of trouble. The model worked: instead of vandalism, Halloween became a town-wide celebration. By the 1930s and 40s, towns across the U.S. were hosting Halloween parades, often featuring cars decorated with banners, pumpkins, and costumed riders. Automobiles, once the victims of mischief, became central to displaying holiday spirit, rolling through main streets as symbols of community pride.
Post-War Suburbs: The Rise of Car Culture
Following World War II, Halloween shifted again. Candy production boomed, suburban neighborhoods with tidy rows of houses made trick-or-treating safe and easy, and the family car became part of the tradition. Parents loaded children into station wagons or sedans to attend school carnivals, church socials, and community parties. For many families, cars extended the trick-or-treat radius, making it possible to cover more streets or visit neighborhoods with brighter lights and better candy. In this era, Halloween solidified its identity as a child-centered holiday, and the automobile quietly shaped how far families could go to celebrate. For RVers and campers, fall often meant one last road trip of the season, many families tied Halloween into these autumn excursions, combining pumpkin picking, crisp weather, and campfire stories.
Mischief Night and Devil’s Night: A Darker Turn
October 30th, the night before Halloween, became known as Mischief Night in many parts of the United States, and Devil’s Night in Detroit. While traditionally meant for lighthearted pranks like tossing corn kernels or toilet-papering trees, by the 1970s in Detroit it escalated into widespread vandalism and arson. Hundreds of fires would sometimes burn across the city in a single night. In response, community groups organized Angels’ Night, in which tens of thousands of volunteers patrolled neighborhoods to prevent destruction. Their efforts were largely successful, and incidents declined dramatically by the 2000s. This chapter of Halloween’s history shows how quickly “holiday mischief” can escalate, and how cars, as both targets and tools, played a key role in the season.
1990s to Today: The Rise of Trunk-or-Treat
As concerns over safety and vandalism grew, the 1990s saw the birth of a new tradition: trunk-or-treating. Churches, schools, and community groups invited families to gather in parking lots where decorated car trunks became the doorways for trick-or-treaters. Parents appreciated the controlled environment, while kids loved the creativity of themed trunks decked out with cobwebs, skeletons, or even miniature haunted houses. By the 2000s, trunk-or-treat had spread widely across North America, often supplementing traditional trick-or-treating rather than replacing it. The automobile, once again, became the centrepiece of the celebration itself.
RVs and Campgrounds:
Halloween Weekends on the Road
In recent decades, RVs and campgrounds have carved out their own niche in Halloween culture. Many campgrounds host Halloween Weekends throughout October, featuring campsite decorating contests, costume parades, trick-or-treat loops through rows of RVs, and haunted trails. Families transform their motorhomes into rolling haunted houses, stringing orange lights, draping spiderwebs across awnings, and setting up inflatable ghouls beside the fire pit. For many RVers, it’s the perfect seasonal send-off before winter storage, a way to combine the freedom of the road with the community spirit of Halloween. What started as a night of mischief has become a month-long celebration of creativity, family, and festivity, often enjoyed from the driver’s seat or the comfort of a cozy camper.
