Philadelphia, Pennsylvania was pivotal in creating our new United States. Visiting the places where Franklin, Jefferson and other founders met is awe-inspiring. No visit would be complete without seeing the Liberty Bell and Independence Hall. But be prepared. To protect these National treasures the security is high. It’s very similar to Airport security measures so factor this into your visit.

A good place to start, of course, is the visitor’s center to get oriented and a timed entrance ticket for the Independence Hall tour. Although these attractions are free they are organized from this location.

Do spend some time reading panels and plaques for a complete story and don’t miss Benjamin Franklin’s Burial Plot just down the street and the site where Thomas Jefferson completed the Declaration of Independence. Everywhere you turn in Philadelphia, History winks back!

Here are some tidbits and lore on the interesting origins of Halloween which are not widely known. This can help you start a conversation with a Halloween party guest you’ve been dying to meet.  If you’re hosting a party, you can make a booklet on your PC to hand out as party favors. Illustrated with Halloween icons, Gothic fonts or scary photos, adds to its value as an unusual memento and trivia collectible.

The Celts were the first Halloween celebrants, around 2900 B.C., although the name of the original celebration was Samhain. The occasion of Samhain was to mark the end of their year, October 31, probably relating to the end of harvest. However, the Celts also believed that the dead had their day each year on Samhain, allowed to roam the earth, sometimes disguised as animals. This put a little spookiness into the harvest season.

The Celts were pagans at this time. One of the customs on Samhain was to collect and exchange food to appease the gods and keep evil spirits at bay. To this end, they dressed in costumes, wearing and brandishing scary masks, designed to frighten off these evil spirits, in much the same way gargoyles were later used on churches. Bonfires were also customary, as an added measure to ensure the evil spirits did not gain a foothold in their community. So costumes, masks, pumpkins and treats were an integral part of the history behind Halloween from the beginning.

Christians converted the pagan Samhain celebration into a Christian celebration of Halloween, followed on November 1 by All Saint’s Day. This cleverly served to divert the offerings to pagan gods and point celebrants in a Christian direction. This strategy did, eventually succeed.

Over a period of hundreds of years, Halloween gradually picked up superstitious myths and stories, still hanging on to some of the pagan rituals and ideas. Thus, today’s ghost stories passed from generation to generation, became part of the history of cities like Atlanta, Savannah, New Orleans and San Diego, which are rich in supernatural folklore. 

Around the 1980s, adults celebrating Halloween came back in vogue. Although most adults still don’t go trick or treating, due to the typically chilly reception they receive, they do attend adult Halloween parties where the host provides the treats and everyone gets into costumes, just as the ancient Celts did.

Say, how about a Celtic Halloween costume?  That would turn up some interesting conversations!

Ghost Tour of Philadelphia – Philadelphia, PA
Betsy Ross is one of Philadelphia’s most beloved icons-a local girl who garnered everlasting fame as the “Mother of the American Flag.” Betsy’s house still stands on Arch Street in the birthplace of the nation, the historic district of Philadelphia, and millions of people have walked through the storied halls of her modest dwelling.

But there is another side to Betsy’s story, one told only in whispers over the course of generations. In that unassuming house on Arch Street, the ghost of Betsy herself has been seen weeping at the foot of a bed in an upstairs bedroom. In the basement, a murky shadow appears, in the same place where a man was shot to death long ago. Betsy’s gravestone stands just outside of the house, but it hasn’t always. Her remains have been moved three times, and it only takes once to conjure a vengeful spirit.

Why do these and other spirits still roam the historic streets and buildings of Philadelphia?

Hear chilling tales from the other side of Philadelphia history and folklore on the Ghost Tour of Philadelphia, a candlelight walking tour of America’s most historic and most haunted city!

Through the back streets and mysterious gardens of Society Hill and Independence Park, costumed guides narrate the evening with haunting tales from Philadelphia’s past and present in the tradition of storytelling. All of the tales are considered true ghost stories, some of which appear in the book Ghost Stories of Philadelphia, PA, by Tim Reeser.

The Ghost Tour of Philadelphia departs daily at 7:30 pm, with an additional 9:30 pm tour on weekends, from Signers Garden at 5^th and Chestnut Streets. It is appropriate for all ages.

The Ghost Tour of Philadelphia is one of the oldest ghost tour operators in the country and has been offering ghost tours in Philadelphia since 1997.

For more information please visit our Trusted Tours webpage at:
http://www.trustedtours.com/store/Ghost-Tour-of-Philadelphia-C630.aspx

Here at Old South Carriage Co. we are looking forward to the visitors arriving with the cooler temperatures.  Not only is the city of Charleston beautiful this time of year, but with fall in the air, the horses are feeling frisky – and so will you!  Our one hour carriage tour covers about 25 blocks of the historic district.  We operate from 9am until 5pm every day of the week.  One each tour you will see houses, gardens and churches. 

The tour is fullly narrated by a licensed tour guide in Confederate uniform with a Red Sash – our symbol of quality and your assurance of a great tour.  At this time of the year, the Fall Tour of Homes begins Sept 25 and runs through October 25, 2008.  Come and see the homes from the outside on a carriage tour and the inside on a house tour.  We look forward to seeing our Trusted Tours guests.

Sincerely,
Kay Motley, mgr.

For mor information, please visit our Trusted Tours web page:
http://www.trustedtours.com/store/Old-South-Charleston-Carriage-Tour-C531.aspx