YORK COUNTY, Pa. — One of Pennsylvania's oldest traditions is back: Groundhog day!
Celebrations are taking place all over Pennsylvania, including here in York where the York Slumbering Groundhog Lodge conducted its annual ceremony at Elks Lodge No. 213, where "Poor Richard" predicts the weather, not Punxsutawney Phil.
And this year, the two groundhogs differ: Poor Richard is expecting an early spring, while Punxsutawney Phil is predicting six more weeks of winter.
The ceremonies began with the annual reciting of the groundhog pledge, induction of new groundhog members, and then a reading of the weather predictions from all four parts of York County.
This year’s Groundhog Day is particularly exciting because most central Pennsylvania ceremonies are back in-person this year after being canceled due to COVID-19 in 2021.
German immigrants brought the tradition to the US, as early as the 1700s and the tradition flourished in particular here in Pennsylvania, which had a large German population that came to be known as the Pennsylvania Dutch.
In German tradition, it was a badger that did the weather predictions, not a groundhog, but immigrants to the U.S. from Germany adopted the groundhog when they arrived.
The tradition goes...if the groundhog spots its shadow when it pokes its nose out of its hole on Feb. 2, it’s going to be a long, frigid six weeks of additional winter. If the animal doesn’t see its shadow, that means an early spring and warmer temperatures will soon start rolling in.
The York Slumbering Groundhog Lodge prides itself on upholding this tradition, and with festivities back in full swing this year, York County seemed to be happy, regardless of the outcome.