Groundhog Day can be traced back
to Candlemas Day, which was celebrated by early European Christians on February
2nd when clergy members blessed and handed out candles. Since February is right in the middle of the
winter solstice and the spring equinox, the weather that day was of great
importance. If the sun were shining,
winter would continue, but if the day brought clouds and rain, winter was
over. The Germans added their own twist
to Candlemas Day when they used a hedgehog.
As they settled in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania, about 80 miles northeast
of Pittsburgh, the migrating Germans brought their Candlemas tradition with
them. The only problem was a lack of hedgehogs. Undetterred, they improvised with groundhogs.
The first official Groundhog Day
was celebrated on February 2, 1886 when Punxsutawney townsfolk gathered
together for a groundhog hunt. Even the
local newspaper proclaimed it Groundhog Day and reported that the animal
had not seen its shadow. The following
year, The Punxsutawney Groundhog Club gathered at Gobbler’s Knob, where they
still meet today, and christened Punxsutawney ‘the weather capitol of the world’. The group also officially named their soon to
be famous groundhog: “Punxsutawney Phil, Seer of Seers, Sage of Sages,
Prognosticator of Prognosticators and Weather Prophet Extraordinary”.
Punxsutawney folklore claims that
there has never been more than one official weather-forecasting groundhog. Unlike most groundhogs who live a mere six to
eight years, Punxsutawney Phil is over 120.
He stays fit by sipping Groundhog Punch, which adds seven years
to his life every time he swigs it. When
he’s not predicting weather, Phil and his wife, Phyllis, live in a climate
controlled area known as The Groundhog Zoo, which is conveniently connected to
the Punxsutawney Library. The couple is
cared for by the Inner Circle—those fellows who crowd around Phil wearing top
hats and tuxedos as he looks for his shadow.
Once Phil decides if spring will come early or not, he announces his
prediction to the Club President in Groundhogese. In turn, the president translates Phil’s
words to the rest of the world.
Sometimes, Phil dishes about more
than just the weather. During
Prohibition, he demanded a drink and in 1981, he donned a yellow ribbon to
remind everyone of the American hostages in Iran. In 1993, Phil was immortalized over and over
in the hit movie, Groundhog Day, starring Bill Murray.
With his flair for predicting the
weather, Punxsutawney Phil and his celebrated shadow will continue their annual
tradition at Gobbler’s Knob—unless the Groundhog Punch runs out.
