The spookiest and grandest Halloween event of the year took place this weekend at the historic Jersey City & Harsimus Cemetery.

The 6th Annual Ghost of Uncle Joe’s fundraiser featured food vendors, beer, a photo contest, live rock music, and an abundance of creative costumes from all across the area. I instantly worked my way over to the stage, where I listened to an energetic performance of KISS by mbrs Girltown, which was among the dozen bands that were involved in the fundraiser. These performances continued up until 10pm, where they moved to not one, but TWO after parties at Porta and LITM to continue the festivities.

After watching a bit of the performance, I decided to check out some of the creative costumes that people were wearing, which included an emoji, a latex glove monster, and a dinosaur, among others. I also spoke to Radek and Stacey, who staffed the photo booth and encouraged people to capture their most terrifying faces on camera. As for the food, Honey Bakery was at the event with their amazing blend of treats – which even included a pumpkin samosa! If you haven’t been to Honey Bakery yet, I highly recommend going to their location on Bergen Avenue.

While there was a considerable amount of people at the event, the stage, vendors, and crowds were largely concentrated in the center of the cemetery, leaving the peripheral areas free for private exploration. With cloudy skies, barren trees, and the reality of walking near the graves of some of the city’s most prominent residents, exploring the cemetery was an eerie, yet interesting experience. I highly recommend visiting the cemetery as it offers an escape from reality while providing a glimpse into the city’s rich history.

The sky was gray and the air was chilly this Saturday afternoon creating the perfect gloomy day for a spooky Halloween celebration. Rock-it Dock-it held the 6th annual Halloween fundraiser at Jersey City’s historic Harsimus Cemetery. The old historic site was the ideal place to host a terrifying party; big green trees, graves, and secret tunnels provided the perfect scenery for The Ghost of Uncle Joe’s event. Parents brought their children out early in their Halloween customs’ to explore the old Revolutionary war site. Children climbed staircases that were built in the 1800’s, they got a chance to view the outside of secret tunnel used during war, and dace to rock music performed by artist like Wilco and Soundgarden.

Ten different acts performed during the day’s event, all giving the audience the energy they needed to get into full character with their costumes. The affair was loaded with some really creative and fun costumes; Charlie Chaplin cruised through the graveyard mutely sipping his beer. Big foot Yetti trampled in his six-foot costume made from latex gloves while the Colonel walked around giving kids treats from the chicken box. Nightfall enhanced the creativity and beauty of the two glowing jellyfish costumes, the two costumes were executed differently but were equally creative and proved that “great minds think alike.”

Anthony “Dancing Tony” Susco said the fundraiser was created to help maintain the historic site after the grave site was abandoned in 2008. A group of volunteers begin managing the historic piece of Jersey City and holding events to sustain the land.

The year’s event was incredibly entertaining; many people came out dressed in costume bursting with the Halloween spirit. Food, music and frightening fun were the perfect combination for the Ghost of Uncle Joe’s extravaganza.

Shanelle Smith also contributed to this article.

Couldn’t make it to the cemetery over the weekend? Dying to see more? Check out some of the photos from the event!