The legend of the jack-o'-lantern

Centuries ago, according to an old Irish tale, there was a stingy, mean-spirited blacksmith named Jack who liked to play tricks on people including the devil.

One Halloween night, Jack sat down to have a drink with the devil, but was too stingy to pay for their drinks. He tricked the devil into turning himself into a sixpence to pay for the drinks, but Jack pocketed the coin and placed it in his purse, which also contained a cross.

The devil was trapped. He could not change himself back because of the cross. Jack offered to release him only if the devil would promise to not claim Jack's soul for one year. Reluctantly, the devil agreed.

The devil did not like being tricked and was anxious to collect Jack's soul. When the year had passed, Jack, while walking along a country road, once again found himself face to face with the devil. Jack quickly asked the devil to get him an apple from a tree before they went. The devil thought he had nothing to lose and climbed into the tree to pick an apple. Jack pulled out his knife and carved a cross on the trunk of the tree — he had once again trapped the devil. This time he made the devil promise to never again ask for his soul.

But Jack's miserly and mischievous ways caught up with him in the end. After he died, Jack was not allowed into heaven because he was so mean and stingy. Because he had made the devil promise to never take his soul, Jack was also denied entrance into hell.

As a result, Jack was doomed to wander in the darkness until Judgment Day.

Jack pleaded with the devil for a light to help him find his way. Begrudgingly, the devil gave him a burning coal that Jack placed in a hollowed-out turnip.

Jack became known as "Jack of the lantern" — or jack-o'-lantern.

When immigrants came to America they found pumpkins to be more plentiful than turnips and used them instead for their jack-o'-lanterns.