October 31st is...

Halloween
- An ancient celebration combining Druid autumn festival and Christian customs. Hallowe’en (All Hallow’s Eve) is the beginning of Hallowtide, a season that embraces the Feast of All Saints (Nov 1) and the Feast of All Souls (Nov 2). The observance, dating from the sixth or seventh century, has long been associated with thoughts of the dead, spirits, witches, ghosts and devils.

Books for Treats Day
- The Books for Treats cause gives gently read children’s books at Halloween instead of candy. “Feed kids’ minds, not their cavities. Give them brain candy.”

National Caramel Apple Day
- The red candy apple came first but research says Caramel apples were invented by Dan Walker, a sales representative for Kraft Foods, in the 1950s.

National Knock-Knock Jokes Day
- a day to tell knock-knock jokes to your family and friends. Celebrated on the same day as Halloween, it gives another reason for kids to knock on their neighbors' doors. Knock-knock jokes don't have to be funny. In fact, sometimes the louder the groan, the more satisfying the joke.

Increase Your Psychic Powers Day
- originated in England back to the nineteenth century. Psychic or Extra-sensory Powers (ESP) or telekinesis power has been demonstrated many times in the past and some people have developed this dormant ability. It is often said bracketing your mind of other thoughts and focusing on a single one is essential to successfully developing your psychic powers.

National Magic Day
- Traditionally observed on the anniversary of the death of Harry Houdini in 1926.

National UNICEF Day
- Remember UNICEF’s orange trick-or-treat boxes? They helped make October 31 National UNICEF Day – and taught scores of Canadians that they can make a vital difference around the world. Today, it’s easier than ever to have an impact on the lives of the world’s most vulnerable children.

Mount Rushmore Completion
- The Mount Rushmore National Memorial was completed in 1941 after 14 years of work. First suggested by Jonah Robinson of the South Dakota State Historical Society, the memorial was dedicated in 1925, and work began in 1927. The memorial contains sculptures of the heads of four US presidents—George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Abraham Lincoln and Theodore Roosevelt.

Samhain
- Samhain literally means “summer's end.” It marks one of the two great doorways of the Celtic year, for the Celts divided the year into two seasons: the light and the dark, at Beltane on May 1st and Samhain on November 1st.

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- This was updated by Catherine on October 31, 2011 -

Category: CDN, October, US, worldwide