Groundhog Day -- Six More Weeks of Winter or Spring?

GroundHog Day
Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania 2005

Yesterday was Groundhog Day and in our area, the sun shone brightly, so we will see six more weeks of winter weather. Since I’m in Texas our winters are usually not that bad and this year we’ve been very lucky. So far, knock on wood, no snow or ice.

But how did this custom get started? According to Wikipedia, a diary entry dated February 4, 1841 is the first documented American recording of this German custom.

In Scotland, the Poem: 

If Candle-mas Day is bright and clear,

There’ll be two winters in the year.

If Candle mas be fair and bright,

Winter has another flight.
If Candlemas brings clouds and rain,
Winter will not come again.

And yes, there are three different spellings of Candlemas.