Millions could hit the streets to trick-or-treat

Halloween, which dates back to Celtic rituals thousands of years ago, has long been associated with images of witches, ghosts and vampires. Over the years, Halloween customs have changed dramatically. Today, Halloween is celebrated many different ways, including wearing costumes, children trick-or-treating, carving pumpkins, and going to haunted houses and parties.

The estimated number of potential trick-or-treaters in 2011 — children age 5 to 14 — across the United States was 41 million, according to the Census Bureau. Of course, many other children — older than 14 and younger than 5 — also go trick-or-treating.

The value of pumpkins harvested from the top six pumpkin-producing states — Illinois, California, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Michigan in 2011 – was $113 million, according to the Agricultural Marketing Resource Center.

Some places around the country that may put you in the Halloween mood are: Transylvania County, N.C., Tombstone, Ariz., Pumpkin Center, N.C., Pumpkin Bend, Ark., Cape Fear, N.C., and Skull Creek, Neb.