Fun Fact Friday #17 - Don't Forget to Carve Your Turnip! 🎃

      Now, this post is going to be less of a fun fact and more of a fun (fictional) tale about the history of jack-o-lanterns and how they got their name.  

      Many of the stories that surround the naming of the glowing pumpkin come from a man named Stingy Jack. Stingy Jack was a troublemaker to say the least. He would drink as much as he could and then play tricks on everybody, even the Devil himself. One day Jack tricked the Devil into climbing an old apple tree. After the Devil climbed the tree, Jack left crosses all around it's trunk. Of course, the Devil is unable to touch crosses, so he was not able to climb down. He did this so the Devil would promise to not take his soul when he died. The Devil promised, Jack took away the crosses, and the Devil climbed down. 

Stingy Jack and his turnip jack-o-lantern.

      When is was Jack's time to pass on he went up to Heaven and met Saint Peter. Jack was told that becasue he was mean and nasty during hi lifetime he was not allowed into Heaven and was sent down to the dark depths of the Devil's home. The Devil kept his promise, though, and would not let him in. Jack was lost somewhere in the middle, called the Netherworld. He asked the Devil how he could leave this lightless place, so the Devil showed him an ember to lead him back to the depths. 

      In this story, Jack always carried a turnip with him because it was one of his favourite foods. Jack hollowed out the turnip and stuck the ember inside. From that day forward, Jack wandered Earth, with no resting place, lighting his way with his "Jack-O-Lantern". 
      
      This story came from Ireland and it's ancient Celtic traditions on All Hallow's Eve. Because Ireland was lacking pumpkins, they would use turnips, rutabagas, gourds, potatoes, or beets. 

      The Tyrconnell area was once known as Little Ireland because of the amount of Irish people that lived there. It is possible that the settlers might have carved some sort of vegetable on All Hallow's Eve. 

Come for a tour at the oldest house in Little Ireland, the Backus-Page House Museum!
29424 Lakeview Line, Wallacetown, ON
(519) 762-3072

October is Family History Month

Happy Family History Month!  It's near the end of October, but there is still time to do something about passing on the history of your family.  I thought I'd share some ideas of quick and easy things to do by yourself or with others since the key is to SHARE your history. 

1. Label your photographs.
There is nothing more frustrating as a family historian, genealogist, museum curator or archivist than to have photographs with no names, dates or places.  I suggest using a light hand with a pencil or a fine point marker that is photo safe, non-toxic, permanent ink, fade resistant, dries quickly, will not smear once dry, and won't bleed through.

2. Tell your children or grandchildren a story about when you were young and record it on video.  Send them the video and save it in the cloud.

3. Make a visit to the cemetery to say "Hello".  Take your family and tell them who they people were to you.

4. Make a family history related craft.  Here is a link to 13 ideas.   https://www.familytreemagazine.com/premium/family-history-diy-projects/

5. Visit your local museum or archives to see if they have documents or books about your family.  Backus-Page House Museum currently requires an appointment to visit since we are on the off season.  519-762-3072

Don't Miss A Visit with St. Nicholas on Saturday

1pm storytelling is SOLD OUT!  Order your ticket right now for 3pm or 7pm.  We can squeeze a couple more people in at 10am if needed.  519-762-3072