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Let's look at some Halloween activities of the past...
1908 – The Record reported that on Halloween night, some young pranksters took the front steps off a residence in the Historic District. Fast forward to 1938, it was reported that SUGAR BEETS were being tossed around in Orchard Heights as part of Halloween activities.
1951 – The Ted Simms’ orchestra, all decked out in scary costumes, played for the Northville Halloween masquerade dance sponsored by the American Legion, with a “Boogie Woogie” Halloween scary pianist dressed as Count Dracula.
1953 – The VFW & Foreign Legion sponsored the community Halloween dance which took place at the High School gym (OVS), with an orchestra dressed in Halloween costumes.
1956 – Halloween festivities began with hours of free Scary Movies at the Marquis Theatre. Also, in 1956 a high school Halloween dance was held at the Community Center where 45 award-winning jack-o-lanterns were displayed (sponsored by the Mothers Club).
1960 – Many Northville trick-or-treaters collected money on Halloween from generous residents for UNICEF, a fundraiser sponsored by the local churches.
1965 – The Northville Fire Department started their annual Halloween event and received great recognition regionally. Northville firefighters popped corn and gave out hundreds of local apples. Guernsey Dairy donated the popcorn machine, Casterlines provided the apples and Mayor Allen the popcorn. This tradition has continued to this day (60th Year in 2025).
1983 – Northville firefighters hosted thousands of folks at their annual Halloween event. Chief Allen observed that “it just keeps growing, like Halloween in the Ville!”
2010 – The Northville Record wrote about family-themed Halloween displays each year for trick or treaters (some for close to 30 years). Themes mentioned were Pirates of the Caribbean, Wild West, Monster Mash, Trolls, Star Trek, and Ghostbusters – just to name a few.
2011 – The DDA debuted “Skeletons Are Alive” in downtown Northville, with 10 skeletons that were the delight of the community. This fun event continues to grow yearly with over 250 skeletons now on display. We now have a spooky pirate ship built at the Clock Tower and hundreds of spiders crawling up the walls in Town Square… the event grows each year.
2025 – Northville will once again close streets around town 6 - 8PM for our youthful trick-or-treaters. The Fire Department will be hosting their annual Halloween open house … and Dunlap & Main Street will be closed for vehicle traffic to keep our children and parents safe. We are preparing for over 10,000 tricker treaters this year in our downtown area.
Come enjoy downtown Northville to experience the ambiance and the multiple Halloween displays on Dunlap St. and Main St. This year, that includes the Ghost Busters’ 3-story Stay Puft Marshmallow Man, the downtown giant rooftop pumpkin and, of course, the Skeletons and Spiders.
This concludes our “Fall Series” in the Ville. We’ll transition to “Remembrances in Town” over the coming weeks, including Historic Elections in the Ville, Veterans Day, past Thanksgivings and much more.
Keep that Northville Halloween Faith!
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