The History of Groundhog's Day

Groundhog Day is a holiday which is celebrated in the United States and Canada and takes place on February 2^nd. Have you ever asked yourself where and when and how did groundhog's day begin? The story behind Groundhog's Day goes way back in history.

Early references to Groundhog's Day can be found in Reading, Pennsylvania at the Historical Society of Berks County dating back to February 4, 1841 when a storekeeper from Morgantown, Berks County Pennsylavaina by the name of James Morris noted in his diary that on February 2^nd which was known to the Germans as Candlemas day back then, was the day that the Groundhog would peep out of his winter quarters to see if he saw his shadow. If he saw his shadow, then he pops back down inside for another six weeks nap and this meant that winter time would be around for another 6 weeks, but if the groundhog did not see his shadow then he would stay outside and wintertime would be soon over and spring time would be arriving soon.

Studies of the groundhog's accuracy of forecasts are a whopping 75% to 90%. A Canadian study was done for 13 cities during the past 30 to 40 years and sets the accuracy level of the Groundhog's success at 37%. Initial studies conducted by the National Climatic Data Center has set the overall predictions accuracy rate to be around 39%.

Sources:

Wikipedia.com

Stormfax Weather Almanac