The Epidemic of 1916: A Mini-Essay

     In the summer of 1916, the counties surrounding New York City closed their doors to outsiders. From Hoboken to Hastings-on-Hudson, communities shuttered their homes and businesses, signs were posted on the outskirts of towns forbidding entrance to children under sixteen, and armed police officers patrolled the streets and railroad stations for fleeing New Yorkers.[1] Given strict orders to search every vehicle, local police were advised not to allow anyone with children outside the bounds of the massive city. The Big Apple was in quarantine, they were told, and the epidemic primarily afflicted children, specifically those under the age of five.[2] Despite the state's best efforts, conditions continued to deteriorate. By August, the outbreak had spread to Connecticut, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania.[3] The Health Department began to issue travel certificates for unaffiliated individuals, yet communities were not impressed and cities within the newly infected states started adopting the xenophobic stances of Hoboken and Hastings-on-Hudson: children were forcibly removed to isolation hospitals, thousands of cats and dogs - believed to be the carriers of the disease - were exterminated, and public spaces were boarded up and denied access to anyone under the age of sixteen.[4] In afflicted towns, the media, building upon claims made by the New York Times, transformed Italian immigrants into scapegoats for the outbreak and society retaliated against them with violence and ostracization.[5] By October, the death toll reached 27,000, with New York City possessing 2,400 of that number.[6] All efforts, including dowsing the city with disinfectant and slaughtering over 72,000 feral animals, proved useless.[7] The entire situation reads like the basis for a gripping science fiction tale; however, it's gleaned from the pages of history. What occurred in 1916 was the nation's first serious outbreak of poliomyelitis and it's effects haunted the country well until mass integration of the Salk vaccine in the 1950s. Although the epidemic has faded from public memory (the nation's rising concerns over its entrance into World War I quickly overshadowed the rising panic), the event, which parallels the occurrences seen in contemporary horror films, proves that truth is far more fascinating than fiction.

Works Referenced

Dobson, Mary. Disease: The Extraordinary Stories Behind History's Deadliest Killers. New York: Metro Books, 2007.

Oshinsky, David. Polio: An American Story. New York: Oxford University Press, 2005.
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[1] Oshinsky, 21.
[2] Dobson, 163-164.
[3] Oshinsky, 21-22.
[4] Dobson, 163-164.
[5] Oshinsky, 20-21.
[6] Dobson, 162.
[7] Oshinsky, 21.

Scarecrow Mask

$10 - $15 (based on 2016 prices)

Makes one mask

I made this prop as part of my costume for 2016’s haunt (see the hat that accompanied it here). To unify the color scheme, I used the same burlap cloth for each patch. To give the mask more visual interest, you could use scraps made from multiple colors of burlap and/or varying fabrics with different colors and patterns.

• One plastic pumpkin mask
• One 10 oz. can of interior/exterior, fast-drying spray paint in flat brown
• One to two yards of burlap
• One 4 oz. bottle of all-purpose tacky glue*
• One to two yards of dark-brown twine
• One 2 oz. bottle of acrylic paint in flat black*
  

1. On a newspaper-lined surface in a well-ventilated area, give the mask an even coat of brown spray paint. Although I only used one coat, you may want more depending on your desired coverage. Keep in mind, though, that this is the base coat and much of the paint will be covered by the burlap.

2. Cut a square of fabric from the burlap, cover an area on the mask with glue, and press the cloth down to conform to the mask’s contours. Leave about a one-inch boarder free for the following step. Repeat the process until the entire mask is covered in patches of burlap.

3. Once the glue has fully dried, sew the patches’ boarders together with the twine. While I found one inch enough, you may want to leave additional fabric during the previous step to give you more to work with.

4. Trim and fray the seams and along the mask’s edges. I found that a sheet of sandpaper helped create the level of distress I wanted.

5. Clean up the openings for the eyes, mouth, and nose. Here, too, the sandpaper works well to fray the fabric. If you find it easier to work with the mask without the mesh lining, remove it (you may want to do this at the very beginning before applying the spray paint).

6. Smudge black paint around the eyes, mouth, and nose to give the mask a smoky appearance. You may want to experiment with a scrap of burlap before applying the paint to the fabric.

7. Sew the eyes and mouth closed with the remaining twine. A haphazard pattern looks spookier, so do not over think your application. If you plan to wear the mask, try not to impede your vision with too much thread.

8. If you removed the mesh lining, reattach it to the mask and add any needed touch ups (e.g. additional fraying to the edges, a little more smudged paint around the eyes, or a few more stitches along the seams).

*You will not use the entire bottle’s content for this project.

Corn Leaf Wreath

$10 - $15 (based on 2016 prices)

Makes one wreath

The fake corn stalks yielded more leaves than I was anticipating, so I decided to use the excess in additional props. The first one was a decorative wreath. I had never created a wreath before and, given the farm theme for 2016’s haunt, I thought the concept would work well. To prevent it from standing out too much, I incorporated a few elements which appeared on other props for that year, particularly the cockroaches.

• One twelve-inch willow wreath
• Thirty fake corn leaves (learn how to make them here)
• Three 1.75 oz. bundles of tan raffia
• One bag of plastic cockroaches (roughly two dozen bugs per bag)
• One disheveled crow (learn how to make it here)

1. Wrap the leaves around the wreath and hot glue them into place. For visual interest, I chose to spiral the leaves outward; however, you could attached them vertically. You may want to play with the leaves’ pattern before gluing them down.

2. Clean up the back of the wreath by trimming the leaves and gluing them down. For the time-pressed haunter, you could skip this step (when the wreath is hung on a door or wall, no one will see its backside). I elected to perform this process because my perfectionist tendencies prevented me from leaving the back a mess.

3. Adhere raffia to the back of the wreath. I found that laying a heavy layer of glue down and pressing the raffia on top of it works well. Once the first layer has dried, you could apply additional layers to give the allotment more girth.

4. If you want the wreath to look clean and inviting, stop once the raffia has dried. You could attach dried corn cobs or sunflowers to give the prop a friendlier appearance.

5. Since I wanted something more unsettling, I glued cockroaches onto the leaves. Try not to over think your application (a random pattern produces the best results). NOTE: The particular cockroaches I used were made with a slick plastic which did not adhere with hot glue. As a result, I used superglue gel to affix them to the prop.

6. Attach a disheveled crow to the inner base of the wreath. Try to use one with wire clamps on its feet (this will give the bird added support if you plan to display the prop outdoors).

7. Since I used a metal hanger, I decided not to create a hanging loop on the back of the wreath. You, of course, are free to fashion one if you choose not to use a hanger.

"Molly Malone" (A Song)

As Benjamin Keatinge highlights, “Molly Malone” (also known as “Cockles and Mussels”) is one of the most well-known street ballads in Ireland and is the unofficial anthem for the Leinster and Irish rugby teams.[1] The song, which recounts the tale of a beautiful fishmonger who dies of fever in the seventeenth century and returns to haunt the streets and peddle her wares, originated in the late-nineteenth century and has varied little since its beginnings.[2] In his examination of diseases throughout history, Dr. R.S. Bray concludes that Molly – be her factual or fictional – was most likely a victim of the Typhus epidemic which swept throughout Europe during the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries.[3]

In Dublin's fair city, where the girls are so pretty,
I first set my eyes on sweet Molly Malone,
As she wheeled her wheelbarrow thro’ streets broad and narrow
Cryin’ ‘Cockles and mussels! Alive, alive, O!’ 
     Alive, alive, O! Alive, alive, O! 
     Cryin’ ‘Cockles and mussels! Alive, alive, O!’

She was a fishmonger, but sure ‘twas no wonder,
For so were her father and mother before,
And they each wheeled their barrows thro’ streets broad and narrow
Cryin’ ‘Cockles and mussels! Alive, alive, O!’
     Alive, alive, O! Alive, alive, O!
     Cryin’ ‘Cockles and mussels! Alive, alive, O!

She died of a fever, and no one could save her,
And that was the end of sweet Molly Malone.
Now her ghost wheels her barrow thro’ streets broad and narrow
Cryin’ ‘Cockles and mussels! Alive, alive, O!’
     Alive, alive, O! Alive, alive, O!
     Cryin’ ‘Cockles and mussels! Alive, alive, O![4]

Works Referenced

Aldrich, Mark. A Catalog of Folk Song Settings for Wind Band. Galesville, MD: Meredith Music Publications, 2004.

Bray, R.S. Armies of Pestilence: The Impact of Disease on History. New York: James Clark and Company, 1996.

Keatinge, Benjamin. “‘In Dublin’s Fair City’: Joyce, Bloomsday, Dubliners and the Invention of Tradition.” The Beauty of Convention: Essays in Literature and Culture. Ed. Marija Krivokapić-Knežević and Aleksandra Nikčević-Batrićević. Newcastle upon Tyne: Cambridge Scholars Publishing, 2014. 51-64.

“Molly Malone.” 500 Best-Loved Sing Lyrics. Ed. Ronald Herder. Mineola, NY: Dover Publications, Inc., 1998. 226.
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[1] Keatinge, 51.
[2] Aldrich, 168.
[3] Bray, 144. 
[4] "Molly Malone," 226.

Scarecrow Hat

$5 - $10 (based on 2016 prices)

Makes one hat

I made this prop to accessorize my costume for 2016’s haunt. Because I used materials I already possessed (my only purchase was the hat itself from a second-hand store), I was able to keep the cost relatively low.

• One standard-size straw or wicker hat
• One 10 oz. can of interior/exterior, fast-drying spray paint in flat black
• One 10 oz. can of interior/exterior, fast-drying spray paint in flat brown
• One to two yards of jute rope
• One to two yards of dark-brown twine
• Four aged bones (learn how to make them here)
• Two severed fingers (learn how to make them here)
• One severed ear (learn how to make it here)

1. Dishevel the hat by tearing holes into the crown and mangling the brim. The extent of the damage depends on how tousled you want the prop to appear. If you plan to use the hat as part of your costume, ensure that the length of your mutilation does not make it un-wearable.

2. On a newspaper-lined surface in a well-ventilated area, give the hat a dusting of black and brown paint. You want to create the illusion of age and dirt, so a random application will produce the best results. If you are adventurous, you could try burning the brim to add further details.

3. Tie the rope around the hat to form a band and trim the excess. For visual appeal, I left the strands rather long and frayed their ends to give them a worn appearance.

4. Determine where you want the bones and body parts to rest on the hat. Once you have done so, tie strands of twine to the rope in the areas you have selected and use the twine to attach these items, knotting the ends, trimming the excess, and gluing the knots for reinforcement.

5. Once you have attached all of the body parts, hot glue the rope into place (it is easier to do this after securing the severed appendages rather than following step three).

6. You could add additional elements, such as frayed raffia or plastic insects, to give the prop more character.