Photos: Nathan Hall
When Kate and Nathan Hall’s first Halloween in Hudson, Wisconsin, arrived, they were prepared. The couple had anticipated the arrival of trick-or-treaters at their home on Sixth Street with a stockpile of candy and ready smiles. But no one came.
“We’ve got our lights on. We’ve got all this candy, and the [kids] are just walking by the house,” Nathan says. It didn’t take long for the pair to solve the mystery. “Everybody [was] down on Third Street,” he says.
Lined with historic homes and shaded by a canopy of mature trees, Third Street is a picturesque setting befitting the quaint character of Hudson. Yet, it’s the neighborhood’s Halloween tradition that has come to define the street. From one haunted house in the late 1990s to more than 50 homes lit up in 2023, neighbors have joined together through the years to create an unofficial Halloween block party that draws thousands of visitors. It’s grown to the point that the street is shut down for the evening to become an avenue of delight for families in the Valley.
Coming to Life
Cheri Rosenberger has witnessed the entire evolution of the annual event. When she moved to her home on Third Street in 1999, the main attraction was a haunted house put on by a group of 20-somethings in an adjacent duplex.
A lifelong Halloween-lover, Rosenberger became one of the first residents of Third Street to decorate her yard for the season. As the years went on, neighbors joined her, putting their own spin on Halloween décor. Within a decade, the tradition became—if not a selling point for Third Street—a wonderful surprise to new residents.
An estimated 50 homes on Third Street and the surrounding blocks light up each Halloween. Some families go all-out with themed decor and activities. “There’s a little something for everyone,” Kate Hall says.
“It’s incredible. You can just see [the kids] coming from the south. I’ve gone out there many years and videotaped the barrage of children coming,” Rosenberger says.
In the 2010s, Rosenberger started a Facebook page, aptly named Halloween on 3rd Street, Hudson, WI, to communicate with neighbors and the broader community. The page now has more than 1,500 followers from all over the Valley.
“People are now driving over from Afton, Bayport, Woodbury, Oakdale. We’ve had people bring vanloads of kids over here,” Rosenberger says.
One year, a young couple closed on their Third Street house on October 31, arriving at the front stoop with two bags of candy and a string of lights. When Rosenberger told her new neighbors that they could expect well over a thousand kids that night, their reaction was immediate. “I thought their eyeballs were going to fall out,” Rosenberger says with a laugh.
The tradition also came as a surprise to Richelle and Gary Jader, who moved from Lake Elmo to a Victorian home on Third Street in 2015. “We didn’t know anything about Third Street when we bought our house,” Richelle says. Their gut reaction upon finding out? Excitement, or as Richelle put it, “Cool!”
“I love Halloween. It’s such a magical night,” Richelle says. “And this night is pure magic on Third Street.”
For a few years, the Jaders experimented with themes: Edward Scissorhands went “OK,” ghoulish Igor costumes were “too scary” and The Wizard of Oz worked well for a while, Gary says. Then, during COVID-19, an idea for a distance-friendly candy cannon inspired a pirate theme.
While the cannon never came to fruition, the pirate theme stuck. The Jaders now put together a lively pirate ship stage, with family and friends coming in costume to put on a delightful production. Gary, an actor who serves on the board at The Phipps Center for the Arts, channels his improv skills to interact with trick-or-treaters. Kids dressed as pirates are often invited onto the ship to take the wheel.
“It’s really fun to work together to create something that brings so much joy to kids and their parents,” Gary says. “… The lines are over a block long. It’s just amazing.”
“Third Street becomes another world that night,” Richelle adds.
After years of longing, the Halls were able to realize their dream of living on Third Street. They purchased their home in 2016 and were faced with one requirement. “[The former owner’s] stipulation was that we had to participate in Halloween,” Nathan says. The Halls were more than happy to oblige, and their two kids, Ruby and Nate, decided on a Harry Potter theme.
Nine years later, it’s still going strong. Each year brings a new addition to the Halls’ epic display, from floating candles and Diagon Alley to a stickwood tunnel and a huge, fuzzy spider. Music is playing, a movie is screened and the family is in full costume. “[Nathan] is a beautiful Hagrid,” says Kate, who channels Hogwarts professor Sybill Trelawney. The pair describes their 15-year-old son, Nate, as a Harry Potter look-alike, and he dresses the part.
Kate and Nathan Hall dress to impress as Harry Potter characters. Starting in late summer, the family will head to a storage unit to begin pulling out an ever-evolving collection of props. Kate remakes a twig arch each year, while Nathan and their son, Nate, work on new decorative additions to make their wizarding world come to life.
“Creating that whole story around your house I think is probably the best part,” says Nate, who has been increasingly involved with his dad in building props in recent years. Nate also has the responsibility of waving a wand to turn on LED candles that seem to float in midair, a moment that amazes visitors time and time again.
The tradition has come to define the Halls within the Hudson area. “That’s how I introduce ourselves,” Kate says. “If people don’t know where we live, I just say, ‘The Harry Potter house,’ and everybody is like, ‘Oh, yeah!’”
Carts of Candy
Halloween Street has grown exponentially alongside Hudson’s population. The celebration stretches nearly seven blocks—with some homes on Fourth Street and other side streets participating, too. “There’s a little something for everybody,” Kate says. “Some of the houses are so frightening that I still don’t go down there … but then there’s some like our house. We’re very kid friendly.”
Yet, the event’s size and scope belie the coordination that goes into the event. “There’s no neighborhood group that gets together and plans,” Gary says. “It just happens organically.”
The Hudson Police Department (HPD) shuts down traffic and parking on Third Street each Halloween starting at Vine Street, turning it into an open walking area for the outpouring of visitors. “It’s just a wonderful event to be a part of,” says HPD community engagement officer James Wildman. “You can look forward to it every year.”
Officer Wildman parks near Living Vine Church around 4 p.m. to open up the squad car for kids to explore, hand out Halloween bags with safety tips and play spooky music over his PA system. Two officers and two Hudson Police Explorers go out in uniform to direct traffic. “They really make it a safe place for people to come, and that’s why there’s so many people,” Kate says.
As the number of visitors grows year after year, so do the candy costs. The Halls purchase two shopping carts full of candy each year—and they’re not the only ones. Starting in 2023, The Hall Family Foundation partnered with Rosenberger to provide candy to homeowners who want to participate but may need a little help to keep up with the growing demand. It’s an effort the neighborhood hopes will be able to continue as long as possible.
“We’re all in it together. Those of us who are in it feel responsible for it,” Richelle says. “We have to make it great.”
“Our family is committed to it, and it brings us joy, and that’s why we do it. And, if we can’t do it, do you know what that means? We have to move. We have to give this house to someone else and let fresh blood come in here and do it,” Kate says. “We’re committed.”
Facebook: Halloween on 3rd Street, Hudson, WI
