Welcome to the first day of Black Squirrel® History Month!

The concept of Black Squirrel® History Month began with Ric Wallace, creator of Victoria-Park.com and also the silly human who thought up Lottery Squirrel; although Lucky, the CES(Chief Executive Squirrel) is really the one in charge around here.

Many years ago, Wallace became quite fascinated with the mysterious story of white squirrels of Exeter, Ontario Canada, but then he discovered that the Black Squirrels have an even more amazing story and history surrounding them. Wallace’s quest for more information about these creatures led to the realization of just how rare and celebrated the Black Squirrel® is in North America. And all his research led to the decision that Black Squirrels, with their amazing history, need to have that history celebrated. Wallace created the following video as a tribute to the Black Squirrel® history events linking London, Ontario with Kent, Ohio:

Black Squirrels Are Unique

That’s right — Black Squirrels in North America have an incredible history: Only 1 in 10,000 squirrels in North America is black, making them rare; some of Ontario’s Black Squirrels have been exported to both Washington, D.C. and Kent, Ohio on different occasions; and many North Americans have never seen a Black Squirrel®, again making these rare creatures indeed.

Now, many of you living in areas where the Black Squirrel® is plentiful may be wondering what we mean calling these little devils “rare.” Like we said — What you need to realize is that, except for small pockets of Black Squirrel® populations, most North Americans have never even seen a black squirrel before. Just listen to the amazement from this tourist from Miami when he spots his very first Black Squirrel® in Toronto, Ontario:

Kent, Ohio

You need to look no further than Kent, Ohio to see how much they celebrate their Black Squirrels, who are directly descended from London, Ontario Black Squirrels. And besides their annual Black Squirrel Festival, the city of Kent has numerous businesses that make use of “Black Squirrel” in their names: Black Squirrel Radio, Black Squirrel Gallery, Black Squirrel Music, Black Squirrel Books, and Black Squirrel Woodworking to name a few.

Other Black Squirrel Towns

In case you think London, Ontario and Kent, Ohio are the only “towns” that celebrate their Black Squirrels, think again. Other communities that celebrate the furry black critters include Council Bluffs, Iowa; Marysville, Kansas; and Hobbs, New Mexico.

The UK, New York, and Vancouver Canada

In the UK, the Black Squirrels have had their DNA traced back to one American Black Squirrel Going Rogue, which we believe can also be traced back to Ontario Black Squirrels. From Origins of British Black squirrel discovered:

The black squirrels that are already dominant in some parts of the UK are descendants of a single rogue American black squirrel according to scientists.

The population of Black Squirrels in Washington, DC spread all the way to New York. From there, Black Squirrels were exported to Vancouver Canada. From Black Squirrels of Inwood:

In 1909 New York City Mayor William Jay Gaynor donated eight pairs of the invasive little critters to the City of Vancouver where they today have come to dominate the landscape.

Black Squirrel® History promoter Ric Wallace believes that the Black Squirrel® originated in Ontario Canada, adapting to more easily survive our cold winters. Being black in color, these squirrels harvest more solar energy for warmth, lowering their need for food consumption for winter survival compared to other colored squirrels. The Great Lakes and the St. Lawrence River acted as a natural barrier to contain the Black Squirrel to the southern and eastern regions of Ontario, as well as over the border into parts of Quebec.

The Black Squirrels that were exported to Washington DC as a gift for President Teddy Roosevelt and the National Zoo, migrated north to New York City, which in turn, exported some of these unwanted Black Squirrels to Vancouver Canada. Wallace believes our boys were just trying to get home! Note that these Black Squirrels were migrating north and not south, probably because hotter climates would be harder on their survival.

To the first geneticist who can prove my theory wrong, Wallace will offer a FREE 24-carat gold-plated Lucky Coin®/Lucky Skwerl Scratcher®. Plus he will link to your research published online.

If you’re an American and you would like to see the Black Squirrel get recognition and perhaps adopted as the official White House mascot, please write President Barack Obama, your Congressperson, and Oprah Winfrey, because these are the people who make things happen.

So for the month of February, LotterySquirrel.com plans to delve deeper into the details of Black Squirrel® history. We will report on all the points mentioned above, plus the following:

The Black Squirrels of Princeton
Black Squirrel Squabbles
What do Barack Obama and Black Squirrels have in common?
The Famous Chicken & Black Squirrels
President Ronald Reagan’s fondness for squirrels at the White House
The legend of the LUCKY Black Squirrels
Toronto & Black Squirrels
Cool Black Squirrel® T-shirts
LUCKY Black Squirrel souvenirs: pins, magnets, bookmarks, squirrel pads, and t-shirts
Black Squirrel Bed & Breakfast
Black Squirrel Golf Club
Black Squirrel Inn