A Timeless Bet: Waynesburg Honors Rain Day Legacy with Annual Hat Tradition

A remarkable day in Waynesburg History, Rain Day has come around again on July 29th! With fun activities, good eats, and competition. From pageants to umbrella contests, one thing has remained the same, the annual Rain Day Hat Bet. 

The hat bet dates all the way back to the early 1900s when farmer Caleb Ely, informed William Allison about his rainy birthdays each year. Curiosity sparked in Allison, so he started keeping track. Each year, there would be documentation of “weather” it rained or not. After a few years, it got passed down to Albert, Allison’s brother, then to Byron Daily in the 1920s. After he passed away, his son John Daily took over as prophet for Rain Day.  

Daily transformed this rainy-day log into an interesting contest around the world. Celebrities would be invited to bet their hat against Daily on the chances of precipitation. The winner would keep the loser’s hat. 

Prior to the hat bet, Daily’s confidence was at an all-time high. In 1937, he hadn’t predicted wrong for six consecutive years. There were no takers in the hat bet, so he wavered his shirt to dress store owner, Louis Rappart, and lost.

The Hats are Coming Off!

Formal record keeping of Rain Day’s celebrity participants began in 1939. Al Abrams, sportswriter, went against Daily in the hat bet. Before 1939, it had rained 62 times out of the 65 years of recording the rain. However, Abrams lost, making him the first recorded celebrity to fall to Daily’s reign of predicting showers. 

In July 1958, almost the entire month of July was filled with rain, keeping everyone’s hopes up that there would be rainfall on July 29th. Rain Day was compared to Groundhog Day in the Washington Observer, being depicted as Groundhog Day’s ‘first cousin’ – a unique holiday, entirely Waynesburg’s own. At this time, Daily had already claimed hats from big celebrities like Bing Crosby and other names in the entertainment industry. 

Almost 10 years later in 1967, more hats were forfeited to Daily. People were finding it hard to believe that there could be consistent rainfall on the same day each year. Daily won another hat from Del Miller, owner of Meadows harness race track in Washington County.

John O’Hara 

News reporter John O’Hara spread the word of Rain Day all around, getting it national coverage and writing about it. O’Hara referred to Rain Day as ‘Bewitching Hour’ in his 1971 article. Waynesburg residents gather in front of the Greene County Courthouse to keep a lookout for any raindrops. 

O’Hara also put Rain Day on the map. In 1931, he submitted his first story about Rain Day to a newspaper in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. He threw the story around, seeing if it would stick, and it did. Rain Day was getting national coverage. O’Hara has been credited for keeping the Rain Day tradition alive.

The Rain Day Auction

After 45 years of betting hats – and winning – Daily had amassed a large surplus of hats and memorabilia from various celebrities who had wagered against the cherished Waynesburg rainfall. To lighten the load before relocating to Florida, he and his wife held an auction conducted by Charles J. Behm & Son on Tuesday, October 2, 1984, at the Greene County Fairgrounds. Proceeds benefited Hospice Care Inc.

Popular items auctioned off included: 

• Tam O’Shanter hat from Dr. William D. McClelland, Allegheny County Coroner (1956)
• Felt scarecrow hat from the Three Stooges (1960)
• A hat from Elenor Schano, Pittsburgh weather reporter (1961)
• Maroon and gold racing jacket from Del Miller, harness racer (1967)
• A hat from Linda Richards, San Francisco weather reporter (1968)
• African safari hat from Paul Long, Pittsburgh newscaster (1969)
• Caricature of St. Louis Cardinals infielder Lou Brock (1979)
• White cowboy hat from Joe DeNardo, Pittsburgh weatherman (1981)
• Autographed golf cap from Tom Kite (1983)

The total amount raised for Hospice reached $208.50 and many buyers bought more than one item to contribute to the cause. Sally Lewellen bought the McClelland and Schano hats for $53.50. Miller’s racing jacket was bought by the City View Nursery for $32.50. The Behm family purchased the Three Stooges felt scarecrow hat for $25.00, then donated it to the Greene County Historical Society Museum.

This was not the first time a hat had been auctioned to raise money in Greene County. In earlier years, Bing Crosby’s hat was auctioned off to raise money for a Waynesburg swimming pool. 

Modern Rain Day

In 1998, Jay Leno, Tonight Show Host bet against the rain, feeling confident he would win due to the statistics. In the recorded 121 years, it had only rained 102 times. Very popular, everyone was buzzing about him being a part of Rain Day and participating in the hat bet. However, Leno lost his hat with the rainfall.

Other Rain Day hat bets included: 

• Troy Polamalu, Pittsburgh Steeler (2006) 
• Coleman Scott, 2012 Olympic Bronze Medalist (2013) 
• The Rainmaker of Punxsutawney Phil (2016)
• Rick Sebak, WQED TV producer (2022) | Watch YouTube Video

2025 Hat Bet

This year’s hat bet contestant is Charles “Pye” Plasko of ‘Pye’s Greene County Weather’ and he is betting against the rain. Back in 2012, Pye was frustrated with weathermen getting the weather wrong. So, he took things into his own hands and made his own weather page for Greene County via Facebook. He’s been doing this for almost 13 years and has gained quite the following. 

Today, Rain Day continues to grow and thrive as one of Waynesburg’s most beloved traditions, celebrated by residents across Greene County. As of the most recent Rain Day, it has rained on 118 out of the 151 years of the event’s history.

So—will it rain again this year? As John Daily said in 1967, “All we need is a few drops,” and in Waynesburg, that might just be enough.