November 23, 2021
Believe it or not, Thanksgiving used to include a tradition beyond the feasting on turkey, cranberry sauce, and pumpkin pie, and, of course, the day-after insanity of Black Friday. The holiday also included something called “Thanksgiving Masking.”
Masking began in the mid-19th century, rising from the practice of “mumming.” Mumming was an old practice in which men ventured from house to house dressed up in costumes, asking for food and money, occasionally in exchange for music. Interestingly, the English had a few traditions, catterning and clementing, which fell on November 23 and 25 respectively. These two holidays were marked by children chanting to beg for food. It is possible that the Masking tradition rose out of a combination of mumming, souling (the practice of asking for food on All Souls’ Day), catterning, and clementing, as well as a Scottish and Irish tradition known as guiling (people dressed in costumes and went between homes singing and offering other services in exchange for a treat).
The Thanksgiving Tradition Came First
Thanksgiving Masking predates Halloween trick-or-treating. Although adults dressed up for masquerade balls on Halloween, and children celebrated Halloween in their own way, the practice of trick-or-treating on Halloween was not really practiced until the 1930s and did not become more widespread until later. By the end of the 19th century, Thanksgiving Masking started to look more like Halloween, although Halloween during the time that Masking was practiced did not look the way that we celebrate Halloween today.
As Masking evolved, people wore a variety of masks, often depicting parrots and other animals as they paraded around town. It was also a day for crossdressing, as the boys would dress up as girls and awkwardly imitate their sisters. They also wore masks of prominent men and well-known politicians, and donned false hands, feet, and noses. In 1899, The New York Times reported that the event was celebrated by “Fausts, Filipinos, Mephistos, Boers, Uncle Sams, John Bulls, Harlequins, bandits, sailors, soldiers in khaki suits.” The costumed revelers also occasionally wore masks with exaggerated facial features that bordered on farce.
