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WHO IS THAT MASKED MAN?? Costume-loving creatures large and small will find innumerable excuses to pull on – or pull off – a different persona, as the thoroughly American love affair with Halloween breaks into full swing this month. Photo by Paul Kashmann

Tour Four Mile House, Denver’s oldest standing structure, as the Booth family prepares for the harvest. Grab a costume from the vintage collection on hand, and take an “old-timey” photo in front of the Four Mile House. Claim your spot in the pie-eating contest or win something yummy in an old-fashioned cakewalk.

If you’re seeking Halloween decor, find the perfect pumpkin in the Four Mile patch or create your very own scarecrow. For simple fun, kick up your heels to old time music, enjoy period games or create a craft. Be sure to visit the mountain men and Native American encampments and climb aboard a horse-drawn wagon for a leisurely ride.

Admission to the Harvest Festival is free; expect minimal charges for some activities. For information, call 720-865-0800 or visit fourmilepark.org.

The 6th annual Halloween Trunk Show, hosted by Sam Robinson (remember Manorisms on S. Pearl St.?) is a treasure trove of home decor items just perfect to create a Halloween/autumn motif for your own wardrobe or your family hacienda.

This year’s event returns to Leo’s Automotive, 1563 S. Pearl St., Sat., Oct. 8, noon to 6p.m. A dozen vendors including Pome, Pearl Clothing, Sticks and Things, and Ms. Robinson herself will proffer a wide variety of hand-crafted delights, vintage finds, botanicals and homemade treats.

Visit halloweentrunkshow.com for info.

The Montessori School of Washington Park, 320 Sherman St., welcomes you to their annual Harvest Festival and Fall Open House, Sat., Oct. 15, 10a.m.-1p.m. While parents of preschoolers are encouraged to tour the school and learn about its program, the focus here is on fun for the entire family.

Celebrate the changing season with a hunt through the pumpkin patch, face painting, an inflatable bounce house, games, crafts and something tasty to eat.

For information, call 303-722-7708 or visit mswp.org.

While most folks visit Denver Botanic Gardens, 1007 York St., to bask in the beauty of things vibrant and alive, longtime residents are aware that the Gardens’ site was once part of the City Cemetery. How appropriate, then, that DBG will celebrate Dia de los Muertos – The Day of the Dead – Sat., Oct. 29, 5-8p.m.

On this day in Mexico, families make altars and give offerings of food, candles, incense, yellow marigolds (cempazuchitl) and, most importantly, a photo of the departed soul.

On Dia de los Muertos, you’ll enjoy live entertainment, artists, a complimentary face-painting and photo booth, and dancers, plus sugar skull-making and papel picado-making (holiday decoration) areas.

Admission to this special event is $8/adults; $7/adult members, students and seniors; $6/children and $5/member children. Anyone arriving in costume with a painted skeleton face receives $1 off.

Those of you willing to venture a bit to the southwest will find more fun awaits at the Denver Botanic Gardens at Chatfield, 8500 Deer Creek Canyon Rd. Every weekend through Halloween night, families can challenge a giant eight-acre Corn Maze, with the theme Native Roots/ Modern Form, a tribute to the Allan Houser exhibit currently showcased throughout the York St. Gardens.

Wend your way through the curling pathways of Native American-style artwork, view the design from two 15-foot- tall illuminated overlook bridges, and watch younger children wander with delight through a special free mini-maze designed just for them.

The giant Corn Maze is open Fri., 4-9p.m.; Sat., noon-9p.m.; and Sun., noon-6p.m. Cost is $10 for adults; $8 for adult members, students and seniors (65+); $6 for children ages 3-12; and $4 for child members.

IT'S A SPOOKTACULAR HALLOWEEN on Old South Pearl Street! Join in the old-fashioned frolic, Sun., Oct. 30, 9a.m.-1p.m.

The Chatfield Gardens will also host the annual Pumpkin Festival on Sat.-Sun., Oct. 8-9, 9a.m.-5p.m. each day.

Don’t forget to bring your wagon to the sprawling 10-acre patch. Pumpkin prices vary by size, with the average cost about $6. Purchase your pumpkin, take it to the free Pumpkin Daycare, and then spend relaxed time to enjoy the festival.

Kids will find tons of fun in the Children’s Activity Tent, featuring arts and crafts, pumpkin decorating, pumpkin bowling and monster hand building. Outside the tent, kids can ride free amusement rides, explore Fairyland with the Harvest Faerie, get their faces painted, ride a pony or even take a ride on the Barrel Train.

Pumpkin Festival admission is $6 for adults; $5 adult members, students and seniors (65+); $4 children ages 3-12; and $3 for child members. Children ages 3-12 who arrive in costume get in free.

For information about any Denver Botanic Gardens event, call 720-865-3585 or visit botanicgardens.org.

South Denver’s historic South High School, 1700 E. Louisiana Ave., welcomes families to the 5th annual Trick Or Treat Street, Thur., Oct. 27, 5-7p.m.

Kids ages 6 and younger (with adult supervision) will find a welcoming netherworld of costumed creatures and appropriate amusements where the school gymnasium usually stands.

A good time is guaranteed all comers, as well as plenty of treats. Please bring your own goodie bag. Admission for Trick Or Treat Street is $3. No one will be admitted after 6:45p.m. For information, call 720-423-6000.               

Wee trick or treaters in the neighborhood around Wash Perk coffee house, 853 E. Ohio Ave., will enjoy the 3rd annual Halloween Safe Route, Sat., Oct. 29, 3-5p.m. The evening’s festivities begin at Wash Perk, where kids will make their own treat bags, then go to clearly identifiable homes (look for the bright orange pumpkin sheet on the front doors) on Clarkson and Washington streets. The event culminates with cupcakes for the kids and treats for the grownups at Lloyd & Maxwell Wine and Spirits (appropriate, eh?), 614 E. Kentucky Ave.

For information, call Wash Perk at 720-542-9202.

There may come a time during the witching season when you need to be in top form to elude the otherworldly spectres swirling about. A good tune-up for Halloween night comes on Fri., Oct. 21, when the Scream Scram 5K run/walk returns to Washington Park for the 12th consecutive year.

Dress up your little monsters and the family dog and head to the park. This year’s Scram is sponsored by the Microsoft Store, and will benefit the 9,100 children served by the Boys & Girls Club of Metro Denver.

While not required, participants are encouraged to run or walk in costume. Prizes will be awarded to top finishers, as well as Best Costume, Best Family Costumes, Best Group (4+), Best Child, Best Pet and Best Team (must be registered as a Scream Team.)

Little ones will find the 100-meter Spooky Sneak just their speed, with every paid finisher receiving treats and awards.

Arrive by 5:15p.m and stroll the orange carpet, where you’ll be judged for costume prizes. After the race, the fun continues on Trick-or-Treat Street with goodie bags, refreshments and – of course – candy for the kids.

Advance registration costs $30 for adults, $20 for kids (under 12) and seniors (over 60). A Scream Team (up to 10 people) costs $250. Registration fees are higher on race day.

For information, call 303-892-9200 or visit bgcmd.org/events/scream-scram.

The Historic Molly Brown House Museum, 1340 Pennsylvania St., will conjure up images of spirits long passed, when Victorian Horrors brings you a selection of wicked writing by long-dead authors. Legendary storytellers like Edgar Allan Poe, H. G. Wells and others will weave wondrous tales of the macabre in the flickering candlelight.

Victorian Horrors takes place Fri.-Sat., Oct. 14, 15, 21 & 22, with performances running every 15 minutes from 6-9p.m. Cost is $15 for members, seniors and students. Nonmember adults pay $18.

To celebrate the harvest season in high style, join Mrs. Brown and her staff for a Halloween Full Tea, Sat., Oct. 29, with seatings at 11a.m. and 1p.m. Cost for this 90-minute event is $20 per person, and includes a tour of the museum.

For information and reservations, call 303-832-4092 or visit mollybrown.org.

If you still haven’t plucked your family’s punkin’ by this point, you’ll be pleased to know that Trinity Fellowship Church and the Episcopal Church of St. Peter and St. Mary are hosting the Great Pumpkin Giveaway, on Sat., Oct. 22, 10a.m.-2p.m.

Your family is welcome to come and select an orange orb of your choice (one per family) and enjoy a mug of apple cider, all at no charge, in the courtyard of the Episcopal Church of St. Peter and St. Mary, 126 W. 2nd Ave. For information, call 303-722-8781.

History Colorado will present a trio of events this month sure to get you in the mood for the season.Denver’s First Cemetery: A Haunted Tour, will take you back to when Cheesman Park and its environs were the site of the City Cemetery.

On Sat., Oct. 22, 6-8p.m., you’ll learn that the modern uses of Cheesman Park, Congress Park and the Denver Botanic Gardens fit nicely with ancient lore. Mother Nature’s flora and fauna not only protect one from the apparitions of the night, but enable one to see and speak with them.

Tickets for the tour cost $20 for members of the Colorado Historical Society, and $25 for nonmembers.

Come to the lavish Grant-Humphreys Mansion, 770 Pennsylvania St., on Mon., Oct. 24, 5-9p.m., as Colorado’s premier historian, Dr. Tom Noel, hosts Capitol Hill Horror Stories.

This annual fundraiser blends refreshments and tall tales by storytellers including Mark Twain, Mary Elitch, Edgar Allan Poe, Elizabeth Byers, J.J. and “Unsinkable” Margaret Brown, Alferd Packer, Mattie Silks and other exhumed eccentrics. Libations and light food are included.

Cost for this memorable and macabre evening is $45 for Historical Society members and $55 for nonmembers.

OLD SOUTH GAYLORD STREET HALLOWEEN SAFE STREET has delighted youngsters with delectable treats for nearly three decades. Gaylord Street businesses will display all sorts of holiday hoopla; the 1000 block of South Gaylord will be closed to traffic on Halloween, 4-7p.m.

And what Halloween would be complete without a walk through an active graveyard? History Colorado’s 23rd annual Halloween Cemetery Crawl visits Fairmount Cemetery, 430 S. Quebec St., Sat., Oct. 29, 1-4p.m.

Voltaire called history “a trick we play on the dead.” Tom “Dr. Colorado” Noel, City Auditor Dennis Gallagher, and a cast of all-star CU-Denver students explore that idea with a walking tour of Colorado’s biggest boneyard. Students portray occupants from mayors to madams, including Polly Pry, John Wesley Iliff, Helen and May Bonfils, and Jennie Rogers. Walk, or ride the tour with the Model A Ford Club of Colorado’s tombstone taxi service (weather permitting).

Tickets cost $25 for members and $30 for nonmembers. All of the above History Colorado tours require advance registration. To reserve a space, call 303-866-4686.

The writings of Edgar Allan Poe take the spotlight when the Byers-Evans House Museum, 1310 Bannock St., presents An Evening with Edgar Allan Poe, Fri.-Sun., Oct. 14-Nov. 5.

The two-time winner of Westword’s “Best of Denver,” An Evening with Edgar Allan Poe is presented by the Byers-Evans House Theatre Company. Stories include The Masque of the Red Death, The Black Cat, The Cask of Amontillado, The Tell-Tale Heart, and many others.                       

The play shows Fri.-Sat., at 7:30p.m., with Sun. matinees at 2:30p.m. A special Halloween performance will be held on Mon., Oct. 31, at 7:30p.m. Tickets are $16. For reservations, call 303-620-4933.

For a different, more lighthearted spin on Halloween, head north of City Park to the Denver Zoo’s 27th annual Boo At The Zoo.

This year’s event begins with an After Dark Boo At The Zoo, Fri., Oct. 28, 6-9p.m. Join the Zoo’s nocturnal creatures during this special Boo! Kids will find trick-or-treat stations throughout the Zoo, as well as creepy crawly animal demonstrations and exciting family-friendly entertainment.

The fun continues on Sat.-Sun., Oct. 29-30, 9a.m.-5p.m., when Boo At The Zoo returns for its traditional daytime run. The weekend will be filled with tricks, treats, entertainment and fun against a backdrop of the Zoo’s brilliant fall foliage.

Admission to the Friday night After Dark Boo At The Zoo is $15 for adults and $10 for ages 3-12. Member adults pay $10, with child members paying $5. Advance purchase is required as this event sells out quickly. Admission to the weekend Boo At The Zoo is included in the regular zoo fee. For information, call 303-376-4800 or visit denverzoo.org.

The merchants of Old South Pearl Street will once again welcome revelers to show off their costumes and haul in some booty at A Spooktacular Halloween, Sun., Oct. 30, 9a.m.-1p.m., in the 1500 block of Old South Pearl Street.

Costumed celebrants will gather up holiday treats and join in old-fashioned games (think bobbing-for-apples). Prizes will be awarded in a variety of best costume categories for kids and dogs alike.

If you think your festooned pooch is worthy of recognition, register Fido or Fidette at The Whole Cat & Dogs, Too, 1540 S. Pearl St., by 11a.m. Judging for the Dog Costume Contest will take place in front of the shop at 11:30a.m. While not every dog can be declared The Best, there will be treats and goodie bags for all.

Children wishing to enter in the Kids Costume Contest judging should meet at the north end of the 1500 block at noon, where they will parade to Cameron Church, 1600 S. Pearl St. Judges will award prizes for best Homemade, Halloween Theme, Person, Thing and Animal.             The Kids Costume Contest is sponsored by the Platt Park People’s Association (3PA). Participants are requested to bring a canned food donation for the Cameron Church food bank. For information, call Nicole Jarman, 303-242-1032.

One of Denver’s longest running fright night traditions returns on Halloween night as the Old South Gaylord Street Halloween Safe Street returns for its 28th year. The 1000 block of S. Gaylord St. will be closed to traffic from 4-7p.m. to allow children and parents safe passage to the dozens of trick-or-treat stations lining both sides of the street.

Merchants will fill the kids’ treat bags with all manner of appropriate edibles and nonedibles, while local restaurants and festival food trucks stand at the ready to sate your family’s thirst and hunger with more substantial sustenance.

Included in the fun this year will be the inaugural Howl-a-ween Dog Costume Contest and Parade. Participants will gather at L’il Angel Pet Boutique, 1014 S. Gaylord St., at 3p.m., and strut the block for all to see. A variety of prizes will be awarded for creative costumery.

For more information, call the South Gaylord Event Hotline, 303-575-1130.