In the village of Unadilla, Nebraska a 36 year Ground Hog Day tradition continues on Friday. Bob Brandt is the head of the Central Ground Hog Committee and says for the third straight year Unadilla Billie will decide if it will an early spring or six more weeks of winter. She will make her prediction at 7:32 Friday morning.
The taxidermy mounted groundhog replaced the retired Unadilla Bill after 33 years. Unadilla became the Groundhog Capital of Nebraska in 1988 when a proclamation was signed by the Lieutenant Governor William Nichol.
Brandt tells KLIN what started this decades long tradition. “I went out to my garden one day and saw that the cabbage had the hearts eaten out of the them. The next day I went out and there was some more damage and I saw a dead groundhog by one,” Brandt says. “Evidently it ate too much cabbage. I called my taxidermist buddy, Duane Hanson who said ‘I’m going to stuff that groundhog. It will be Groundhogs Day here next month.’ And that is how it started.”
He said Bill served the community well for 33 years as he made the trip outside to predict the weather every February 2nd. Bill was retired in 2021 and now lives at the Nitty Gritty Gas & Thrift Convenience Store in Unadilla where people can still see him today.
Unadilla will also hold their big annual Groundhog Day celebration on Saturday. Commemorative Groundhog Day T-shirts and other memorabilia will be available. You can get your picture taken with Unadilla Billie on Historic Main Street. The annual parade will take place on Main Street at 2 p.m. The Ground Hog King and Queen will also be crowned. He says people from all over flock to their community each year.
“We have some people come from Pennsylvania,” Brandt says. “We have a lot of people that grew up in Unadilla that come back for reunions, we have people coming from Syracuse.” He says on a good weather day they may get as many as 500 people attending their celebration.