Happy Groundhog Day!

Well, it’s Groundhog Day 2022. To kick off the celebration, here are a few vintage postcards (all culled from eBay) in honor of the holiday.

According to the back of this card, this is Punxsutawney Phil at the Civic Center Zoo, instead of his usual digs at Gobbler’s Knob. He looks a little cranky. I like his little groundhog grotto, though.

This 1970 postcard (below) is labeled "PUNXSUTAWNEY, Pa. – Headquarters of the Groundhog.” Phil looks a little younger in this one. Maybe he had a few swigs of his magical punch that keeps him eternally young?

Suspiciously, this postcard with an identical groundhog has the inscription “Greetings from MINERAL CITY, Ohio.” Buckeye Chuck lives in Marion, so I’m not sure who this guy is.

And here’s another Groundhog muscling in on Phil’s turf. The back of the card reads, “Meet “Jimmy the Groundhog” emerging to make his Feb. 2nd prognostication. Resident Celebrity, Jimmy lives in Sun Prairie, WI – The Groundhog Capital of the World!"

And here’s one last groundhog glossy. The caption on the back of this postcard reads, “Yep! I’m a ground hog as any one can plainly see. Nope! I didn’t come out to see my shadow. I do that only on Feb. 2nd.”

But Dan, you might be wondering – where is Phil’s forecast from 1972?

Ah, unfortunately that was one of the years when the Journal completely ignored the festivities in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania. 

So here’s the 1952 report from seventy years ago instead. It ran in the Journal on Groundhog Day 1952.  It includes a photo of Punxsutawney Phil and his prediction, but also has a local angle in which a Journal reporter interviews a groundhog. It’s pretty funny how the groundhog showers him with abuse for bothering him.

And from that same edition of the Journal, here’s a cute ad for Employee Transit Lines with a great groundhog illustration.

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For a real dose of Groundhog Day déja vu, be sure to visit my past posts on this topic.