Fifty years ago, in 1974, a Highland Park Elementary School third grade class successfully lobbied to have the firefly declared Pennsylvania’s insect. 

The school celebrated the anniversary Tuesday, writes Pete Bannan for the Daily Times.

Alum, state and local officials joined 730 students to recognize the year that 26 students from Dorothy Holzwarth’s class convinced the state legislature and the governor to declare the firefly the state insect.

Gov. Milton Shapp signed it into law April 10, 1974, surrounded by the students.

The idea started in the fall of 1973, when the class discovered that Maryland students were working to make the monarch butterfly Maryland’s state insect.

The Highland Park class voted to get the firefly recognized in Pennsylvania. After all, it already had the state’s name in its scientific name—photuris pennsylvanica.

“We did select the firefly because there are a lot of them and they do not harm anything,” said Joe Adams, one of the students.

The class started a letter writing campaign to state reps and senators. The campaign included over 6,000 students throughout Pennsylvania.

Apparently, before their effort, Pennsylvania had no state insect.

Read more about the campaign and about the teacher and class that made it possible in the Daily Times.