Pumpkin plethora, Whole Foods Market, Berkeley

The most profitable holiday in America began as a pagan holiday in Ireland.

To celebrate the end of the harvest and All Hallows Eve, Celtic farmers carved scary faces into turnips and potatoes and placed them in windows and doors to frighten away evil spirits. The British carved large beets for the same purpose.

Immigrants brought this tradition to the United States. The pumpkin proved to be a superior jack o'lantern (although a carved beet, oozing red juice, has its own morbid appeal).

Follow this video link for jack o'lantern history from The History Channel:
http://www.history.com/topics/halloween/history-of-halloween/videos/haunted-history-of-halloween?m=528e394da93ae&s=undefined&f=1&free=false