Witch Sighting Lore in the South Uptown

I have been in our sweet neighborhood for over 30 years. In the day, it used to be called CARAG. We were not named after anything but an acronym; "Calhoun Area Resident Action Group." We now go by South Uptown. At a recent gathering for Happy Hours that we have in the street to connect, we brought up a noble tradition that we used to share around this time of the year.

At the turn of the century, (if that doesn't date us all) there was a seasonal trend of Halloween decorations which had witches on brooms slamming into light poles or trees. Much like the recent trend on inflatables or this years massive skeleton rage. Pam P. reminded me of the history of the whole phenomenon which lasted around a decade of holidays. The way it originated is that one of the neighbors, Noel, had purchased a set of 7 of them at a box store and offered to share them with homes next to him. Over the following few years, as the trend grew, the block from 33rd to 34th became a known destination because of the line of witches slamming into the rows of giant trees on both sides of the boulevard.

Pam had mentioned that each one had a custom attach-band which measured which tree and house number they went to after they were pulled out of storage. I remember fun gatherings during the Halloween stretch with soup pots, hot cider and even games with donuts on a string. It was usually a few weeks prior to the actual date so the community had time to enjoy them on walks. A few years in we even wrote a grant for funding what became known as the Witch Splat event. It qualified as a neighborhood community building event and we were able to increase the number of witches purchased and engage more homes along the stretch.

It seems ages ago. The area still has that connection and we celebrate in different ways now. I can vouch that kids going door to door has increased post pandemic, so I know it is a ritual still celebrated among families in the city. I had asked Pam what became of the witches and she implied they have long hit the dumpster or recycling bin. It's not as if they were high quality products and after several seasons on the trees and in winter storage, the witches have all moved on to other places. But this was a story to share from the past for those who don't know it ever happened.