Just out of curiosity I checked with my copy of the Chambers Book of Days (which was published in 1875). There's a considerable amount in there on what was done then on 31st October in terms of mischief-making, fortune telling and so on, and the narrative clearly states that much of this is very old indeed. So, it was considered old in 1875 and much of it is still current. My Chambers Book of Days is an English publication. So let's not run away with the idea that the contemporary take on Hallowe'en is altogether a recent invention.
I'm not getting drawn into the rest of this discussion, though!