which started as a groundhog hunting club. Freas is credited with starting the holiday on Feb. 2, 1886, after he wrote an article in the Punxsutawney Spirit that claimed the groundhog Punxsutawney ...

In 1886, a local Punxsutawney newspaper editor, Clymer Freas, was also part of the Punxsutawney Groundhog Club, which started as a groundhog hunting club. Freas is credited with starting the holiday ...