By Don Steen
It seems only appropriate the Santa Claus Post Office was the first in the nation to debut the newest holiday stamps. The dedication ceremony, held in Santa’s Lodge on Thursday, October 7, saw notable figures from as far away as Washington D.C. making the trip to America’s Christmas Hometown for a First-Day-Of-Issue Ceremony unveiling four new festive stamps, which illustrate the story of Santa’s visit on Christmas Eve.
The United States Postal Service issues approximately 25 to 30 commemorative stamps every year, with a special ceremony for each. These stamps are miniature works of art that highlight some aspect of the American experience. The postal service includes an array of selections for various holidays, including Hanukkah, Diwali, Kwanza and other faiths observed stateside.
The first stamp issues were authorized by an act of Congress, approved March 3, 1847, and featured Benjamin Franklin and George Washington.
The A Visit From St. Nick stamps feature four holiday designs, all created by illustrator Brad Woodard. The first stamp shows Santa on a snowy rooftop against a star-filled sky. The second shows Santa descending a chimney. The third is a close-up picture of Santa winking against a green background. The fourth shows Santa in his sleigh with four reindeer visible flying across the face of the full moon. These are being issued as Forever stamps, always equal in value to the current First-Class Mail price for one ounce.
Scott Bombaugh, vice president and chief technology officer for the USPS, said it was a privilege to visit the town of Santa Claus all the way from Washington D.C. to help honor the town’s unique history with the Christmas holiday and the postal service as a whole through these new stamps.
“The A Visit From St. Nick stamps bring joy to the kid in all of us,” said Bombaugh. “Holiday cards and letters mailed with these stamps will delight people of all ages. They are good to give as gifts or stocking stuffers, too.”
Around 125 people crowded into the Celebration Room to share in the occasion, including several postmasters from as far away as Richmond volunteering to issue the first cancellations of the new stamps on the premises, for collectors wanting the iconic Santa Claus postmark. The Heritage Hills Choir sang a selection of Christmas carols in the runup to the ceremony as visitors filed in to share in the moment.
The ceremony kicked off with a presentation of the colors by members of the Santa Claus American Legion, along with singing of the National Anthem led by local resident Cheri Taylor. Melissa Arnold of the Spencer County Visitors Bureau welcomed all to the ceremony, particularly members of the USPS from Santa Claus and around the country. She emphasized the importance of the postal service in everyday life, especially during the pandemic when many came to rely on them for the delivery of necessities.
“They continue to do an incredible job for us,” said Arnold.
Bombaugh remarked on the history of the story of Santa Claus, from his origins as the generous third-century Bishop, St. Nicholas of Myra, to the modern legend. He noted how many immigrants to the United States brought folk characters that ultimately helped shape the 20th Century iteration of the Jolly Old Elf.
“The beloved figure is an icon of Western Culture,” said Bombaugh.
He also pointed out the postal service’s own close ties to the holiday season. The USPS has organized “Operation Santa” since 1912, a national version of the Santa Claus Post Office’s own volunteer effort to answer children’s letters to Santa. Even aside from that, the holiday season is always a busy time for postal workers as gifts make their way across the country.
“We’ve been planning for the holidays for months already,” Bombaugh joked.
Santa Claus Town Council President Mike Johannes also took the podium to help mark the occasion. He read a resolution from the town council honoring USPS’s 165 years of service to the community.
Pat Koch, president of the Santa Claus Museum and Village, took up the topic of the town’s history and its intrinsic link to the USPS. She shared some background on the two prominent legends surrounding the town’s name.
When the town originally asked for a post office in 1856, the USPS informed them they could not keep the original name of Santa Fee, as it was too similar to another Indiana town of Santa Fe. This compelled community members to gather together to discuss a new name for the town, on Christmas Eve night as fate would have it. According to one telling, a falling star was seen in the sky that appeared to land nearby, invoking the image of Santa Claus flying across the night sky. Koch joked that a “meteorite crater” was discovered later, and many put pieces of metal at the site to give the story more credence. The other legend, one more popularly invoked nationwide, involved the winter wind blowing open the doors to the meeting hall during the naming debate, prompting a child to exclaim, “Santa Claus!” and thus ending discussion.
Regardless, the town and its post office earned the unique name of Santa Claus, and in time it became famous worldwide. For a time, the name was truncated into one word, but by 1927, then Postmaster James Martin successfully lobbied to change it back to Santa Claus, rather than Santaclaus. This sparked wider interest in the town’s name, including an appearance in Robert Ripley’s “Believe it or Not!” syndicated column, which prompted a flood of children’s letters from readers all over.
The Postmaster General at the time was none too pleased at this development, as the more mail that came through, the more money Martin had to be paid. There was talk of another name change in 1931, but Koch noted public outrcy was quick to put that notion to bed. From that point on, Martin and a wave of successors began to answer these letters to Santa on a volunteer basis, an effort that ultimately included such local luminaries as Jim Yellig, Koch’s father and the iconic mid-century Santa Claus of Santa Claus Land. Today, Koch herself remains heavily involved in the volunteer effort, as well as the rest of the town’s unique spirit. She emphasized the importance of remembering those who helped build the legend of Santa Claus, its unique postal heritage and its world-renowned theme park.
“There’s so many people who built foundations for us,” said Koch. “They would be so happy to see so many people in our town.”
Chief Mail Elf Ed Rinehart of the local Santa’s Elves group closed out the ceremony with an update on how many letters to Santa have been flowing through the local post office, and processed at the original postal building at the Santa Claus Museum. He estimated about $11,000 has been spent in postage already preparing for the coming Christmas season, as many letters have already been received and answered. There were only a total of 19,000 letters received last year, due to the pandemic. However, 34,000 letters came in from across the world in 2019, and a similar or greater amount is expected going forward.
Many of these letters are written in children’s local languages, including Mandarin, Russian and countless more. Fortunately, many local exchange students volunteer to help answer letters in the writers’ native tongues. Regardless of language, letters are already coming in at a faster pace than last year, and Rinehart expects a busy Christmas season.
“They’re coming in pretty good right now,” he said.
