12 Facts About Groundhog Day

Groundhog Day ceremony held at Punxsutawney in western Pennsylvania, centering on a semi-mythical groundhog named Punxsutawney Phil, has become the most frequently attended ceremony.

Groundhog Day was once known by the obsolete Latin alias Arctomys monax.

The earliest mention of Groundhog Day is an entry on February 2,1840, in the diary of James L Morris of Morgantown, in Pennsylvania Dutch Country, according to the book on the subject by Don Yoder.

However, it was not until the following year in 1887 that the first Groundhog Day considered "official" was commemorated there, with a group making a trip to the Gobbler's Knob part of town to consult the groundhog.

The first "Groundhog Day Picnic" was held in 1887 according to one source, but given as post-circa-1889 by a local historian in a journal.

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Either way, the Punxsutawney Groundhog Day Club was formed in 1899, and continued the hunt and "Groundhog Day Feast", which took place annually in September.

Groundhog Day was not named Phil until 1961, possibly as an indirect reference to Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh.

Largest Groundhog Day celebration is held in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania, where crowds as large as 40,000 gather each year.

The average draw had been about 2,000 until the 1993 film Groundhog Day, which is set at the festivities in Punxsutawney, after which attendance rose to about 10,000.

In Southeastern Pennsylvania, Groundhog Lodges celebrate the holiday with fersommlinge, social events in which food is served, speeches are made, and one or more g'spiel are performed for entertainment.

Groundhog Day is observed with various ceremonies at other locations in North America beyond the United States.

At any rate, Groundhog Day serves as a convenient and whimsical milestone to mark the end of the darkest three months of the year, and bookends nicely with Halloween, the two holidays being opposite and roughly equidistant in time from the Winter Solstice, with Halloween festivities starting after sunset and taking place in the nighttime, and Groundhog Day being a celebration of sunrise and morning.