It is unknown how long the custom of April Fools has been popular. But it’s safe to say this day of practical jokes ignites everyone’s mischievous streak!
Delving into the newspaper archive has revealed a Victorian perspective to the historical and cultural reasoning for the jokes and japes that occur on the 1st of April, as well as some local nineteen-century hoaxes that remain unexplained.
A publication of the Dorset County Chronicle from the 7th of April, 1866 contains an article exploring the “remarkable days [of April] according to ancient customs”. This exploration starts with April fool’s day, or “All Fools Day”. A day described as being “set apart for the exercise of practical jokes”. Although whoever wrote this article doesn’t sound too keen on this celebration, as they describe it as a “sort of travesty of All Saints day”. It is believed that when the Gregorian calendar was adopted in 16th century Europe, whoever failed to keep up with change was branded the fool.
This article, however, recognises the cultural relevance to this consistently beloved day of pranks. Dorset and Somerset’s readers were told how the French would declare the fool “Un poisson d’Avril (April Fish)”, and how in Scotland, whoever was branded the fool would be called “a Gowk” a Scotch term for “that foolish bird the Cuckoo”. Readers were even told of the similar Hindu holiday of the “Hali Festival” now known as Holi Festival, the Festival of colours, a time for merry-making, where people would pull “similar tricks on the last day of March”. This article that goes on to list all of the important holidays in April gives a delightful and informative look into April Fool’s day. Just like the rest of the world, Dorset and Somerset seemed to adore a good hoax, even in the 1800s!
An article published in the Dorset County Chronicle on the 18th of August, 1864 titled “A Hoax” shows how the spirit of April fools is carried throughout the year and reports of a locomotive based prank that took place in Taunton. Railway authorities were left stumped when a great number of people appeared at the station enquiring for the “excursion train [that] would run from Taunton to Torquay” at cheap rates. With a disappointed crowd forming at the station, the railway authorities “compensated” the fooled crowd and offered them an ordinary train journey at the price stated in the hoax notice. A culprit isn’t named in the article which adds to the bizarreness of the prank.
Another mysterious hoax is reported just two years after the Taunton train trickster struck. An article published in the Dorset County Chronicle on the 25th of October, 1866 reports a “practical joke” that was played on the “good people of Weymouth on Saturday evening past”. Residents of the seaside town were alerted to the town crier announcing a “grand display of fireworks from the Pile Pier”. The article describes this announcement as “too enticing” not to draw a crowd. This prank promptly snowballed to the point that “many hundreds” of people congregated on the New Quay and Esplanade. This large crowd “waited patiently” in the rain for half-an-hour before realising they had been duped. With dampened moods the residents of Weymouth left for home with “many maledictions on the heads of the parties who had perpetrated the hoax”, and who can blame them! This unknown firework fibber was never revealed.
Reading about these historic hoaxes are as baffling as they are mischievous and are a fascinating insight into what was considered a prank in the 1800s!
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This was a guest blog written for Dorset History Centre by Chloe Taylor.