26 March 1913: A Basely Deceptive Woodpecker

On this day in 1913, the Athens Banner ran the following story on the front page:

Woodpecker Basely Deceived Athens Lady at Her Front Door

Yesterday morning bright and early--early anyhow and fairly bright on the part of all parties concerned--a lady living in a pretty nice section of the city heard a rapid rapping at her door and hastened to throw aside her kitchen apron--she had no help that morning--and as hastily brushing back the rebellious little ringlets of hair which had strayed away from their moorings--she went to the door. There was nobody in sight.

She called to mind that it is not yet the first of April and went back to the rear of the house--to be called again by the same insistent, persistent, nervous, determined knocking at the front.

Again she went to the door--to be disappointed.

The program was rehearsed four times--before the good lady discovered by accident that her visitor was none other than a red-headed woodpecker--perched over the front porch, hammering on the weather boarding of the gable.

Learn More:

• Athens Banner, Feb. 1913 - Jun. 1913 on Microfilm in the Heritage collection.
  
• Life Histories of North American Woodpeckers by Arthur Cleveland Bent in the general collection.
• Red-Headed Woodpeckers by James E. Gerholdt in the children's collection.
• The Owl and the Woodpecker: Encounters with North America's Most Iconic Birds by Paul Bannick in the general collection.
• Garden Birds of America: A gallery of Garden Birds and How to Attract Them by George H. Harrison in the general collection.
• Annotated Checklist of Georgia Birds (multiple editions) in the Heritage, Reference, and general collections.
• John Abbot's Birds of Georgia: Selected Drawings from the Houghton Library, Harvard University by John Abbot in the Heritage, Reference, and general collections.
• Woody Woodpecker page on the Independent Movie Database website.