Did You Know There Are Other Towns Named Santa Claus in the U.S.?
If you live in the WBKR listening area, you are very familiar with Santa Claus, Indiana! It's home to Holiday World and Splashin' Safari, The Santa Claus Christmas Store, Lake Rudolph & the Santa Claus Land of Lights, Santa's Candy Castle, the Santa Claus Museum and, of course, the Santa Claus Post Office, which has all of its elves hopping each time Christmas rolls around. But do you recall . . . the other, less famous towns named Santa Claus in the U.S.? We found them!
Santa Claus, Georgia
I actually learned of Santa Claus, Georgia from a tweet by storm chaser Reed Timmer. Reed was tracking powerful tornadoes through Georgia during last week's severe weather breakout and he was sharing satellite images and video on social media.
After seeing this tweet, I decided to do a little research about this "other" Santa Claus. Santa Claus, Georgia is a small town situated in Toombs County and, according to Wikipedia, its population is estimated at roughly 165 people. And, like Santa Claus, Indiana, the town loves to have fun with the theme and many of its roads have some Christmas flavor: Candy Cane Road, December Drive, Rudolph Way, Dancer Street, Prancer Street, and Sleigh Street! And the town is located about 185 miles southeast of Atlanta.
Santa Claus, Arizona
There's also a town named Santa Claus in Mohave County, Arizona. Its story isn't quite as jolly as the other two. The city was founded in 1937 and, like Santa Claus, Indiana, was home to some charming Christmas-themed architecture and local businesses took advantage of some great branding opportunities. The local post office offered new Christmas stamps annually. A nearby restaurant offered Santa burgers and Dasher and Dancer omelettes. However, according to Wikipedia, all businesses in Santa Claus were closed by 1995 and, in 2003, the town's population had dwindled to just ten people.
Santa Claus, Arizona is now a true United States ghost town. It's abandoned. And, in 2005, all mail sent to the Santa Claus post office was rerouted to Santa Claus, Indiana, which continues to prosper and welcomes thousands of visitors each year.