Every year kids across the globe mail their letters to Santa in hopes that the jolly old elf will respond and make their holiday wishes come true. In the town of Santa Claus, Indiana a team of busy elves is giving St. Nick a helping hand.
The Santa Claus Post Office, which is located on Kringle Place in Santa Claus, Indiana, was established in 1856, but it wasn’t until 1914 when the Santa Claus’ Postmaster James Martin decided to put that famous name to work and start answering kids’ letters. As the years went, by the nonprofit organization, Santa’s Elves Inc. was established and with the help of volunteers, the group has continued the work that Martin started.
Each year the team answers letters from kids that are sent from all over the world. In 2018 the volunteers answered more than 22,000 letters. If you live in Indiana, you can simply stop by the original Santa Claus Post Office and hand-deliver your kids letters. Otherwise, you can send your letter to Santa Claus, P.O. Box 1, Santa Claus, IN, 47579.
The town became so famous for its special holiday postmark, that people came from all over the country just to mail their letters. In fact, in the 1930s the U.S. Post Office suggested changing the name of the town to deal with the overwhelming demand, but luckily that change never happened. Every year the special postmark design gets a revamp when a local high school student designs a new picture postmark for use on mail from the Santa Claus Post Office during the holiday season.
—Shahrzad Warkentin
Featured photo: Mike Arney via Unsplash
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