Groundhog Day Traditional Geocache
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Size: 
(small)
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Groundhog Day is a popular tradition celebrated in the United States and Canada on February 2. It derives from the Pennsylvania Dutch superstition that if a groundhog emerging from its burrow on this day sees a shadow it will retreat to its den and winter will persist for six more weeks. If not spring season will arrive early. The Groundhog Day ceremony held at Punxsutawney in central Pennsylvania has become the most attended. Grundsow Lodges in Pennsylvania Dutch Country in the southeast part of the state celebrate them as well. Other cities in the United States and Canada have also adopted the event. The 1993 movie “Groundhog Day” helped boost recognition of the custom, and the celebration has spread even further afield.
Origins: The earliest mention of Groundhog Day is a February 2, 1840 entry in the diary of James L. Morris of Morgantown, Pennsylvania, in Pennsylvania Dutch Country, according to the book on the subject by Don Yoder. The first reported news of a Groundhog Day observance was arguably made by the Punxsutawney Spirit newspaper of Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania in 1886 however it was not until the following year in 1887 that the first Groundhog Day considered "official" was commemorated here with a group making a trip to the Gobbler's Knob part of town to consult the groundhog. People have gathered annually at the spot for the event ever since. The largest Groundhog Day celebration is held in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania, where crowds as large as 40,000 gather each year (nearly eight times the year-round population of the town). The average draw had been about 2,000 until the year after the movie screened in 1993, after which attendance rose to about 10,000.
In Film: Groundhog Day.
In Song: I Got You Babe (Sonny and Cher)
Additional Hints
(Decrypt)
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