40 Vintage Halloween Costumes That Will Haunt Your Nightmares

By Savannah Cox | Edited By John Kuroski

Published August 26, 2022

Updated October 28, 2024

From doll masks to bags over heads to outfits that can't even be described with words, these vintage Halloween costumes are supremely creepy.

The Halloween costumes of today may be flashy, complicated, and over the top, but in days gone by, there was enough horror for everyone in a simple mask. While these outfits were quite basic — and often just composed of something like a bag over someone’s head — these getups were also a million times creepier than any costume you’d see today.

We’ve scoured the archives for some of the creepiest vintage Halloween costumes of all time:

Creepy Vintage Halloween Costumes Wicker Chair

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Enjoy these creepy vintage Halloween costumes? Check out our other posts on the best Halloween costumes and take a tour of the real life Shining Hotel.

author

Savannah Cox holds a Master's in International Affairs from The New School as well as a PhD from the University of California, Berkeley, and now serves as an Assistant Professor at the University of Sheffield. Her work as a writer has also appeared on DNAinfo.

editor

John Kuroski is the editorial director of All That's Interesting. He graduated from New York University with a degree in history, earning a place in the Phi Alpha Theta honor society for history students. An editor at All That's Interesting since 2015, his areas of interest include modern history and true crime.

Citation copied

COPY

Cox, Savannah. "40 Vintage Halloween Costumes That Will Haunt Your Nightmares." AllThatsInteresting.com, August 26, 2022, https://allthatsinteresting.com/creepy-vintage-halloween-costumes. Accessed February 1, 2025.