Olive Luther prepares to stock costume displays at The Theatrical Shop, Tuesday, Oct. 29, 2024, in West Des Moines, Iowa.
Charlie Neibergall/AP
Children in Des Moines, Iowa, will get to trick-or-treat on Halloween for the first time in decades, and to find out why a person there only needs to look to the sky.
Forecasted storms are forcing a one-day delay of “Beggars’ Night,” the annual tradition that children in Iowa’s capital city participate in that replaces the Oct. 31 observation of All Hallows’ Eve held widely across the rest of the country.
The tradition began in 1938 as a way to reduce vandalism and violence, according to the State Historical Society of Iowa. In that year, Des Moines police responded to more than 500 reports of vandalism on Halloween night, in which teens set fires and threw bricks. Ever since, kids go trick-or-treating on the night before Halloween, known locally as Beggars’ Night, while Halloween is reserved for adult and family-oriented activities, according to the historical society.
In addition to the storms forecasted for Wednesday night, there is the potential for tornadoes and hail, according to the National Weather Service.
The tradition involves children telling jokes in exchange for their sweet treats.
According to the Des Moines Register, past years’ quips have included, “How does a cucumber become a pickle? It goes through a jarring experience?” and “Why don’t lobsters share? Because they’re shellfish.”
The tradition has since spread to other parts of Iowa and Ohio.
