Once a year, Canadians turn to their local woodchucks to decide our wintry fate with just a glimpse of a shadow, or lack thereof.
It seems nonsensical to ignore the weather forecasts and meteorologists for a groundhog’s analysis of when winter will end, but what else is there to do in a Canadian winter?
For decades, Canadians have asked these cute little critters to come out of hibernation to predict whether it would be an early or late spring. If a groundhog sees its shadow, there will be six more weeks of winter. If the groundhog doesn’t see its shadow, there will be an early spring.
Wiarton Willie is best known for his ability to predict the weather, and he has become a household name after a number of scandals over the years.
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So what exactly is Groundhog Day?
Groundhog Day in Canada
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Groundhog Day in Canada gained popularity in the 1950s, all thanks to a joke. Mac McKenzie was a local of Wiarton, Ontario — about three hours northwest of Toronto — and he sent a letter to his city friends to invite them to a celebration in Wiarton.
According to Wiarton’s website, most people knew that McKenzie was joking and didn’t bother to make the snowy trek from Toronto, but one dogged reporter showed up. Toronto Daily Star‘s (now Toronto Star) Frank Teskey arrived in Wiarton, asking about the event, he was soon pointed towards the Arlington Hotel, where he found out that there was no real event.
As the story goes, Teskey discovered that the celebration was a joke and that McKenzie and his friends were having drinks in the bar, so he joined them. Knowing that he couldn’t return to Toronto without a story, they made one up. Yes, Groundhog Day in Canada has been rife with scandal since day one!
So, how did the Wiarton prankster and city journalist create the story? According to Wiarton’s website, McKenzie and Teskey went outside, dug a hole in the snow and threw a lady’s white fur hat on top. Teskey snapped the shutter, and the myth was born.
There was no actual groundhog at the Wiarton Groundhog Day celebrations until the 1980s. Enter Wiarton Willie.
Wiarton Willie
Wiarton Willie has come in the form of multiple groundhogs. The original is said to have lived 22 years, which far exceeds the six year lifespan of the average groundhog. Wiarton Willie has been famous in Ontario for decades, but he shot to national fame after it came out that he never made it to the 2021 Groundhog Day celebration.
Turns out, Wiarton Willie IV died before the 2021 celebration. Reporters and Groundhog Day celebrators became suspicious when Willie never made an appearance. In the fall, the town announced that Willie had died from a tooth abscess prior to the 2021 celebration.
This isn’t the first time a groundhog has popped its clogs before the big day. According to a February 4, 1999 CBC article, the original Wiarton Willie died just days before the Wiarton Groundhog Day festival, so they decided to have the corpse predict the weather.
Dressed in a tuxedo, coins over its eyes and a carrot between its paws, the corpse of a groundhog made an appearance at the 1999 Groundhog Day festival. The body wasn’t the real Wiarton Willie but a stuffed groundhog in funeral blacks. According to the CBC, Willie had left in his will that it would be an early spring.
Wiarton Willie V will make his debut at this year’s celebration. Willie always has an understudy or two, dubbed Wee Willie(s), to take over if needed. This year’s Groundhog Day will look a little different as Willie V is a brown groundhog, a change from his albino predecessor.
Wiarton Willie murdered or murderer?
When the news broke that Willie IV had died before his 2021 predictions, rumours swirled that there was a murderer on the loose. OK, not actually, but everyone loves a good conspiracy.
While he wasn’t a victim of murder, one of the Wiarton Willies may have actually taken on the the role of murderer himself. In 2003, the wily woodchuck, who would’ve been Willie III, was accused of double murder. The victims? Two Wee Willies.
According to a 2003 CBC article, a town official found herself in hot water when it surfaced that she knew Willie III was behind the deaths of his understudies.
The previous May, two Wee Willies stopped coming out of their burrow. At the time, the town official suspected Willie III may have taken out his rivals, but it wasn’t confirmed until the bodies of the Wee Willies were found deep inside the burrow that the three shared.
Can a groundhog actually predict the weather?
No, but Willie V is going to try his best on February 2. Willie V will make his debut on a live broadcast.
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