The Story of the Jack O Lantern

The following story is an Irish folktale.

There once was a stingy man named Jack. He stole from the people in his village and took whatever he wanted from them.

On the night of Halloween he met the devil. He wanted a large meal and couldn't pay for it. The devil bought it for him telling Jack that he would have to repay his debt the day he died. Jack agreed. Walking home from the pub he stole two pumpkins from
His neighbors pumpkin patch. Once home he started carving the pumpkins. Suddenly the devil appeared telling Jack he had to repay his debt. The devil threw a burning coal at Jack which Kack caught inside the pumpkin. The devil told him that although he wasn't dead yet that when he did die because of his thievery and greed he would be condemned to wander the earth in search of a home. Legend has it that you can still see Jack searching for a home carrying a pumpkin to light the way

Some people believe that Halloween is the night ghosts and spooks leave their way and wander the earth. They dress up in costumes to scare them away and they light a jack o'lantern to remind them of what happened to Jack

This story was from the book The Story of the Jack o'Lantern by Katherine Tegen

Hope you enjoyed it. My Hubby is Irish and I love hearing different Irish folk tales


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