History of the Jack O Lantern/Tale of Stingy Jack
Irish immigrants brought the current tradition of carving pumpkins into Jack O’Lanterns to America. But, the original Jack O’Lantern was not a pumpkin. Pumpkins did not exist in Ireland in ancient times. Ancient Celtic cultures in Ireland carved turnips on All Hallow’s Eve, and placed an ember in them, to ward off evil spirits. The Jack O’Lantern legend goes back hundreds of years in Irish history. The original legend (or story) is from ancient Celtic folklore in Ireland. Many of the stories, center around Stingy Jack. Here’s the most popular story: Stingy Jack was a miserable old drunk who took pleasure in playing tricks on just about everyone: family, friends, his mother and even the Devil himself. One day, he was at his favorite pub with the Devil. The Devil offered to buy Jack a drink in exchange for his soul. The devil transformed himself into a coin to pay for the drinks. But, Jack stole the coin and put it in his pocket where he kept a cross. The cross kept the Dev...