Santa Claus, Indiana facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Santa Claus, Indiana
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Town Hall in Santa Claus
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| Motto(s):
America's Christmas Hometown
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Location of Santa Claus in Spencer County, Indiana.
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| Country | United States |
| State | Indiana |
| County | Spencer |
| Township | Carter, Clay, Harrison |
| Area | |
| • Total | 6.86 sq mi (17.76 km2) |
| • Land | 6.44 sq mi (16.67 km2) |
| • Water | 0.42 sq mi (1.09 km2) |
| Elevation | 449 ft (137 m) |
| Population
(2020)
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| • Total | 2,586 |
| • Density | 401.68/sq mi (155.09/km2) |
| Time zone | UTC-6 (Central (CST)) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC-5 (CDT) |
| ZIP code |
47579
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| Area code | 812 & 930 |
| FIPS code | 18-68022 |
| GNIS feature ID | 2396905 |
| Website | Town of Santa Claus |
Santa Claus is a town in Spencer County, Indiana, United States. It is located in the southwestern part of the state. In 2020, about 2,586 people lived there.
This unique town is famous for its many Christmas-themed places. These include Holiday World & Splashin' Safari and Santa's Candy Castle.
The town started in 1854. It was first called Santa Fe. But there was already another town named Santa Fe in Indiana. So, they could not get a post office. After some meetings, the name Santa Claus was chosen.
This town has the only post office in the world named after the Christmas figure. Because of its special name, the post office gets thousands of letters for Santa each year. Volunteers called Santa's Elves make sure every child gets a reply. This tradition has been going on since at least 1914. The post office also creates a special Christmas stamp design every December. This also brings mail from all over the world.
Santa Claus has grown a lot since 1990. Most residents live in Christmas Lake Village. This is a gated community built in the late 1960s. It has about 2,500 acres (10 km²) around three lakes: Christmas Lake, Lake Holly, and Lake Noel. All the street names in Christmas Lake Village are related to Christmas. Many people also live in Holiday Village, a neighborhood on the north side of town.
Contents
History of Santa Claus Town
The community of Santa Claus began in 1849. The story of how it got its name is a mix of facts and legends. In January 1856, the town asked for a post office. They sent their request using the name Santa Fe. The request was sent back. The message said, "Choose some name other than Santa Fe."
How they chose the name Santa Claus is not fully clear. There are many different stories. Other names were also considered but not picked. What we do know is that in 1856, the Post Office Department accepted the name Santa Claus.
Post Office Changes
On June 25, 1895, the post office name was changed to one word: Santaclaus. This was part of a plan to make place names the same across the country. The town's special name was not well known until the late 1920s. Postmaster James Martin started to promote the Santa Claus postmark.
The name was changed back to Santa Claus on February 17, 1928. The Post Office Department decided there would never be another Santa Claus Post Office in the United States. This was because of all the holiday mail and the problems it caused. The huge amount of holiday mail even caught the eye of Robert Ripley in 1929. He featured the town's post office in his famous Ripley's Believe It or Not! cartoon.
Early Tourist Attractions
The town's name also inspired Milt Harris, a businessman from Vincennes, Indiana. He created Santa's Candy Castle. This was the first tourist attraction in Santa Claus, Indiana. It opened on December 22, 1935. It was supported by the Curtiss Candy Company. The red-brick Candy Castle is thought to be the first themed attraction in the United States.
Another attraction, Toy Village, had small fairytale buildings. These were sponsored by big toy companies. Santa Claus Town led to the town's first newspaper, The Santa Claus Town News. It also led to the Santa Claus Chamber of Commerce.
Harris's project got the attention of Carl Barrett. He was a rival businessman from Chicago. Barrett did not like what he called Harris's focus on money. So, he planned his own attraction, Santa Claus Park. On December 25, 1935, Barrett unveiled a 22-foot (6.7 m) tall statue of Santa Claus. It was placed on the highest hill in town. The statue was said to be solid granite. But later, cracks showed it was actually concrete.
Years of lawsuits between Harris and Barrett caused problems for both. The lawsuits were about who owned the land. They even went to the Indiana Supreme Court. National news reported on the story of "Too Many Santas." Over time, both men's ideas were forgotten. The town grew west because of land development by the Koch Family.
Holiday World and Growth
On August 3, 1946, Louis J. Koch opened Santa Claus Land. This is said to be the world's first theme park. The park's name changed to Holiday World in 1984. In 1993, it became Holiday World & Splashin' Safari. This happened when a water park was added.
The Koch family still owns and runs the park. It gets over one million visitors each year. It is home to The Voyage. This is a wooden roller coaster that has often been voted the best in the world.
More recently, Christmas Lake Village has grown as a gated community. This has more than doubled the population of Santa Claus. In 2005, a local company bought Santa's Candy Castle and other old buildings. They planned to fix and reopen them. Santa's Candy Castle reopened on July 1, 2006. The 40-ton, 22-foot concrete Santa Claus statue was fixed in 2011. In 2012, a historic church and the town's first post office were moved next to the large Santa Claus statue.
Geography of Santa Claus
Santa Claus covers about 6.86 square miles (17.76 km²). Most of this area is land, about 6.44 square miles (16.67 km²). The rest, about 0.42 square miles (1.09 km²), is water.
Population Facts
| Historical population | |||
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| Census | Pop. | %± | |
| 1970 | 63 | — | |
| 1980 | 514 | 715.9% | |
| 1990 | 927 | 80.4% | |
| 2000 | 2,041 | 120.2% | |
| 2010 | 2,481 | 21.6% | |
| 2020 | 2,586 | 4.2% | |
| U.S. Decennial Census | |||
2010 Census Details
In 2010, there were 2,481 people living in Santa Claus. There were 936 households and 737 families. The town had about 385 people per square mile (149 per km²).
Most people were White (98.1%). A small number were African American (0.3%), Native American (0.1%), or Asian (0.5%). About 1.3% of the population was Hispanic or Latino.
About 37.3% of households had children under 18. Most households (70.1%) were married couples. The average household had 2.65 people. The average family had 3.00 people.
The average age in town was 39.8 years. About 27.7% of residents were under 18. About 15% were 65 or older. There were slightly more females (52.1%) than males (47.9%).
Transportation in Santa Claus
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The Indiana Department of Transportation built a new route for U.S. Route 231. This highway is now within 3 miles (4.8 km) of Santa Claus. Town leaders believe this new highway will help bring new businesses and growth.
To match the town's Christmas theme, Indiana 162 is called Christmas Boulevard. This is the main highway through town and connects to the new U.S. 231.
Famous People from Santa Claus
- Jay Cutler, a former NFL quarterback for teams like the Chicago Bears.
- Arad McCutchan, a former college basketball coach for the University of Evansville.
See also
In Spanish: Santa Claus (Indiana) para niños
