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    Santa Claus
    Santa Claus
    Santa Claus
    Ebook203 pages1 hour

    Santa Claus

    By Pat Koch and Emily Thompson

    3.5/5

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    About this ebook

    Santa Claus, Indiana, acquired its famous name in 1856 and has been celebrating the spirit of Christmas ever since. Postmaster James Martin began answering children s letters to Santa and his elves in 1914, a tradition that continues to this day and makes Santa Claus a favored destination for those seeking the holiday spirit. The town s unique name prompted Robert Ripley to feature it in his popular cartoon strip, and businessmen such as Carl Barrett and Milton Harris raced to erect Christmas attractions as early as 1935. Beating Walt Disney by nearly a decade, Louis J. Koch opened Santa Claus Land, the nation s first theme park, in 1946. Today, visitors still flock to Santa Claus to share in the magic of America s Christmas Hometown.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherArcadia Publishing
    Release dateNov 25, 2013
    ISBN9781439642504
    Santa Claus
    Author

    Pat Koch

    Pat Koch, founder of the Santa Claus Museum & Village, and Emily Weisner Thompson, director of the Santa Claus Museum & Village, have carefully chosen a variety of photographs from the archives of Holiday World and Splashin� Safari, the Santa Claus Museum, the O.V. Brown Collection, and a stocking full of images contributed by members of the local community. These sources have also provided the extraordinary stories and memories captured throughout the book.

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      Book preview

      Santa Claus - Pat Koch

      captions.

      INTRODUCTION

      Santa Claus, Indiana, is a tiny town with a big story—a Christmas story. Visitors are curious and often ask questions that hit at the heart of the tale: How did this town get its name? How did the community begin? Why did people choose to live here? How did a celebrated theme park come to be located in this rural community? They should probably also ask, How did residents of a town of 30 people find themselves standing in the Oval Office in 1962? The answers to these questions are critical to understanding how a small farming settlement of German immigrants grew to attract national attention and visitors from all over the world.

      Longtime Santa Claus resident Pat Koch grew up in the nearby town of Mariah Hill and has heard these questions countless times. One of Pat’s clearest memories from childhood is her grandmother Appalonia Schue referring to the town by its original name of Santa Fee rather than the more commonly accepted Santa Fe. Though it seemed Schue was using an incorrect term, her memory was crystal clear. Santa Fee, as it was called long before it became Santa Claus, was indeed the correct pronunciation.

      Santa Fee, Indiana, was settled by farmers who were attracted to the rural beauty and fertile soil of the area. It was a wild country, and they would need to work hard to hack a living from the dense oak and hickory forests. Abraham Lincoln and his family moved to southern Indiana in 1816 and farmed their nearby land for over 14 years. The Lincolns lived just down the road from Santa Fee, and years later Abraham would reminisce about his boyhood experiences in his poem, The Bear Hunt. In it, he writes, When first my father settled here / ‘Twas then the frontier line / The panther’s scream, filled night with fear / And bears preyed on the swine. While southern Indiana in the early 1800s was a veritable wilderness, families made their homes and sunk their roots deep in the ground.

      Although a tiny hamlet for over 100 years, Santa Fee was not destined for anonymity. In the mid-1800s, the town was forced to choose a new name in order to secure a post office. It seemed the town’s name was too similar to that of another town in Indiana called Santa Fe, located a few hours north. The townspeople eventually settled on the name Santa Claus, though it is doubtful those early settlers could have anticipated the impact their choice would have on history. This decision, the story of which lives on in various myths and legends, propelled the town onto a national stage. Children’s letters to Santa Claus flooded the post office, and businessmen became interested in establishing tourist attractions centered on the Christmas theme. The town also caught the eye of Louis J. Koch, an entrepreneur from Evansville, who opened his little theme park, Santa Claus Land, in 1946.

      Santa Claus Land eventually matured into Holiday World and Splashin’ Safari. The small town grew in response to the growth of the park, developing amenities and infrastructure to meet the needs of millions of visitors. New houses and communities popped up to provide homes for the increasing number of residents. Like many descendants of early Santa Claus families, Brian and Kelly Greulich connect personally to the park, as four generations of their family have worked on the grounds. Brian’s grandmother Agnes Collignon worked in the kitchen, his mother, Irene, was a waitress in the dining room, and Brian worked in the maintenance division. Now, their two children, Nikolaus and Heidi, spend their summers working at the park. Kelly works for the town of Santa Claus, and their family history remains intricately intertwined with the park and the town.

      Many descendants of those original German pioneers still reside in the area, and they know their ancestors would not recognize the town today. Santa Claus, Indiana, has become an epicenter for the celebration of Christmas. It has shifted its core location, and there is very little remaining of the original town of Santa Fee; however, Santa Claus has not forgotten its roots. Strike up a conversation with anyone at the local post office or grocery store, and you will quickly learn that most folks can trace their family in this area back many generations. Family trees are often mapped in detail and intersect with dozens of other families in and around the town. Some people, such as Santa Claus native Greg Martin, can trace their history to several famous Santa Claus residents. The Martin family photographs capture priceless moments in time that otherwise may have been lost to history. This story is not unusual. When the idea for this book was planted, residents of Santa Claus and the surrounding area eagerly volunteered hundreds of photographs, allowing us to harvest a rich crop of images and stories. They are proud of their heritage and happy to share their memories.

      This book is an overview of the history of Santa Claus, Indiana, and seeks to recognize the importance of preserving the history of this community and its people. The town of Santa Claus stands on the shoulders of many industrious and courageous people who came here to build a community. Their convictions and perseverance allowed them to sink their roots in fertile soil and construct a town with an identity unlike any other in America. Historic structures, such as Santa’s Candy Castle, the Santa Claus Church, and the Santa Claus Methodist Campground Tabernacle, stand as reminders of the faith and determination of past generations.

      Like the celebration of Christmas itself, the town of Santa Claus has evolved. It has grown from a rural farming community to a thriving tourist destination. Despite the many changes, some traditions remain constant. Thousands of children’s letters arrive each year, and Santa’s dedicated helpers ensure each and every letter receives a response. Their dedication, like that of their forebearers, helps to ensure that

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