THE LEGEND OF PUMPKIN CARVING
Although we take the pumpkin for granted, most of us don't realize that carving the vegetable and using it as a Halloween decoration is relatively new.
Pumpkins are native to North America, and when waves of immigrants from Ireland and Scotland came here in the mid-19th century, they brought the "carving" tradition with them.
The Irish festival known as Samhain was celebrated in late autumn to make the passage from summer to winter. They believed fairy spirits lurked in the darkened fields, and keeping the lighted turnips kept the fairies from settling into their homes. They didn't have pumpkins to carve in very Northern Europe where the large turnips served as light to ward off fairies and spirits and to guide travelers on their way.
In America the carving of pumpkins to use as lights began in the mid 19th century and caught on nationally as the United States began celebrating Halloween. American farmers soon discovered that the lowly squash known as pumpkin grew well as a native plant in the U.S. Farmers bred different lines of pumpkins used specifically for carving. Smaller "sugar" or "pie" pumpkins yielded the puree that was best used for baking and cooking, while the larger pumpkins developed in Massachusetts had thinner flesh that was not as tasty for eating. In the 1960s the carving of pumpkins was relegated to the larger pumpkins and the smaller, fleshier pumpkins were used to make puree for baking. It was the French who used the pumpkin for carving in the festival of the lost souls, otherwise known as "All Souls Day' in the Catholic faith. All Souls Day was a celebration of those who had died in the past year. Since the day after Halloween, November 1, was already a Catholic celebration called "All Saints Day," November 2 became the day of introspection and memories of loved ones who had died. Carved. lighted pumpkins lit the way for souls on their journey to Heaven.
From: The Halloween Pumpkin: An American History
Author: Stephanie Butler
http://www.history.com