October 24, 2025
Provided Image/Dyresha Harris
The new West Philly Fright Registry features nearly 100 homes and businesses with elaborate decorations. Above, an underwater cave decoration at the home of creator Dyresha Harris last year.
For Dyresha Harris, seeing her West Philly neighborhood in a new light has always been one of her favorite parts of Halloween.
"I remember that being really magical for me when I was younger," she said. "Having these streets that were so familiar to me suddenly transformed was sort of this sense of wonder, and it was a lot of fun. So I often say that one of my favorite parts of being a grown up is being the person to provide that."
Every year, Harris and her partner put a different display out front of their Garden Court home — from a 20-foot robot to a "Stranger Things" reenactment to an underwater cave. Still, she felt that there were some homes on side streets that weren't getting the attention they deserved.
To help neighbors, she created the West Philly Fright Registry, a list and map of places celebrating Halloween. The registry includes houses and businesses from 45th to 60th streets and Market Street to Baltimore Avenue that have elaborate decorations, will be handing out candy or hosting spooky events like haunted houses. Locals can sign up in a Google form with their address and information about their setup — some neighbors have even gone as far as to name their homes, like the Witch of Walnut and the Larchwood (Jack-o) Lantern Lair.
The list includes over 90 locations so far, including neighborhood staples that have been decorating for years. Some homes have more traditional decorations, while one owner made fake cages out of laundry hampers, Harris said.
"People often put a lot of effort into making that magic happen and I think it feels good to to be recognized and to have someone say, 'Yeah, that's really cool that you are providing that service for your community' and getting to shout out all of the care and creativity that's going on in the neighborhood," Harris said.
The Fright Registry also includes the Yamatorium and the Urban Art Gallery, two art spaces that will be open the night of Halloween.
West Philly resident Dyresha Harris stands in front of a robot house display she created at her home in 2020.
For Harris, decorating for Halloween can be a labor of love for many in the community, so she hopes the list will offer the chance for neighbors to share their hard work. But she also thinks it's a holiday about community and sharing joy in a creative way, no matter what's going on in the world.
"It's just this magical time where you get to imagine what could be possible, who you could be if there were literally no limits and just explore some other part of yourself," Harris said. "I think that's a really important thing in this moment, that we hold on to our imagination, and that when we look around at the world, we don't just stop there, we think 'What else could be possible? How could this be different? How could we shift what's around us?' I feel like Halloween really does that."
