It’s Halloween, and this Iowa city is finally letting kids trick-or-treat tonight — after more than 85 years

By: CNN

Posted: Oct 31, 2024 11:59 AM EDT

KCCI via CNN Newsource

DES MOINES, Iowa -- Children in Des Moines, Iowa, will go trick-or-treating on Halloween night for the first time in more than 85 years.

Unlike the majority of the country, communities in the Des Moines metro area go trick-or-treating during Beggars’ Night, the day before Halloween, thanks to a policy-turned-tradition dating back to the 1930s.

This year, severe weather forced the city to break with tradition and push the festivity to Halloween. Beggar’s Night saw thunderstorms and fog while Halloween is forecast to see prime conditions with no rain and temperatures in the 40s and 50s.

“To my knowledge, it has never been moved or canceled since it was established after Halloween in 1938,” Assistant City Manager Jen Schulte told the Associated Press. “However, the safety of our residents, families and children is always our top priority and led to the change in this year’s scheduled Beggars’ Night.”

The Beggars’ Night celebration can be traced back to a particularly crime-stricken Halloween in 1938, according to the State Historical Society of Iowa. That night, Des Moines police answered 550 reports of vandalism – teenagers setting fires, breaking windows and sidelining street cars.

In an effort to curtail the hooliganism, what became the city’s Parks and Recreation Department designated October 30th as Beggars’ Night, when children would be allowed to go door-to-door trick-or-treating under adult supervision. Halloween would be reserved for family-friendly activities and adult events.

But the event had a twist: Children would have to sing a song or recite a poem in exchange for candy. Over time, the tradition became children telling jokes.

The plan worked – by the mid-1940s, the number of Halloween police calls had been cut in half, according to the state historical society.

What was originally an attempt to curb vandalism around Halloween became a tradition for the city.

Before the news of a rainy forecast, some communities had already moved Beggars’ Night to the Saturday before Halloween so trick-or-treating wouldn’t fall on a weekday.

As for next year, the city will conduct a survey to consider an official date change to the weekend, according to Des Moines Mayor Connie Boesen.

To trick-or-treaters, the point of the night remains the same no matter the day of the week.

“I mean, it makes a difference. But you still get candy,” Lucy Jaksich, a Des Moines 9-year-old, told CNN affiliate KCCI.

CNN Meteorologist Taylor Ward contributed to this report.