“What did the witch do when her broomstick broke?”/“She witch-hiked.”

A witch riddle is:
 
Q: What did the witch do when her broomstick broke?
A: She witch-hiked.
 
The Halloween joke has been cited in print since at least 1996.
     
 
21 October 1996, Kokomo (IN) Tribune, “A Little Bit of Humor,” The Bubble Gum Rapper, pg. C6, col. 4:
Cecil: How did the witch get around when her broomstick broke?
Sheila: She witch-hiked, of course. 
     
31 October 1996, Vancouver (BC) Sun, “Joker’s corner,” pg. D18:
Cecil: How did the witch get around when her broomstick broke?
Sheila: She witch-hiked, of course.
 
18 October 1997, The Yazoo Herald (Yazoo City, MS), “Mighty Funny’s Mini Jokes, The Mini Page, pg. 12A, col. 1:
Q: What did the witch do when her broomstick broke?
A: She witch-hiked!
 
Google Groups: alt.humor.puns
Broke
newsman
10/17/99
(...)
>:How did the witch get around when her broomstick broke:??
>:    She witch-hiked.
 
Google Groups: alt.humor.puns
[Fwd: Submit: Halloween Riddles]
Stan Kegel
10/30/00
(...)
What did the witch do when her broomstick broke?
She witch-hiked! (Jakk Bass)
(...)
How did the witch get around when her broomstick broke:?
She witch-hiked. (From MAL)
 
Google Books
Goofy Jokes & Giggles
By Charles Keller
Illustrated by Dave Garbot
New York, MY: Sterling Publishing Company, Inc.
2002
Pg. 21:
“How did the witch get around when her broomstick broke?”
“She witchhiked.”
     
Google Books
The Usborne Book of Silly Jokes
By Lenard Le Rolland and Laura Howell
London, UK: Usborne
2003
Pg. 29:
What did the witch do when her broomstick broke?
She witch-hiked.
 
Twitter
Acorn Sales‏
@acornsales
What did the #witch do when her #broomstick broke? She witch-hiked! Our Witch #Stamp is an essential for your next #Halloween #art project.
1:45 PM - 9 Oct 2017