Groundhog Day

Groundhog Day 2023

Come in person or
watch live on Facebook at our County Executive’s page:
Joseph N DiVincenzo Jr

8am
Thursday, February 2, 2023
Essex County Turtle Back Zoo
Amphitheater Stage
(may be moved indoors due to weather)

Watch the Prediction HERE.

Read the Prediction HERE (will be updated after the ceremony on 2/2/23)

Groundhog Day has its roots in Europe as a pagan festival that bade farewell to winter’s icy hold and welcomed the warm Spring sunshine. In Europe, the native hedgehog was the prognosticator, but when colonists arrived in the future United States, there were no hedgehogs! Colonists soon discovered groundhogs, who shared many similar traits to hedgehogs, such as their omnivorous diet of plants and insects and making burrows in the ground. The inaugural groundhog in the US saw his shadow on February 2nd, 1887, at Gobbler’s Knob in Punxsutawney, PA, promising a long winter.

What’s Your Prediction? Coloring Page

Join us in prognosticating the weather. Early Spring? More weeks of Winter? Print out our coloring page and share your prediction on social media.

Download coloring page HERE

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