Mi 11. Aug 2021, 00:25
Here Are 10 Facts About How Santa Claus Manages His Mail Fas
1. Santa Used To Send Letters and Not Receive Them.
Santa's letters started as missives sent to children rather than being sent. Parents used them to guide their children's actions. Fanny Longfellow, the wife of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow Longfellow wrote letters to her children each season, offering an assessment of their previous actions. As gifts became more prominent in Christmas, this practice was changed. The letters became Christmas wish lists. Some parents still wrote letters to their children written in Santa's voice. J.R.R. could be the most remarkable of these. J.R.R. might be the most well-known. For over 25 years, Tolkien sent his kids with beautifully illustrated messages on Father Christmas. Check santa letter sample for info.
2. At first, children didn't mail them.
Children came up with a variety of imaginative ways to deliver Santa letters where they needed to be in front of the Post Office Department, as the USPS was known to 1971. The children from the U.S. would take their Santa mail to Santa and drop them off at the fireplace. Children from Scotland would accelerate the process by putting their heads towards the chimney, and shouting the Christmas greetings. Latin America had children attach their letters and look on as they drifted off into space.
3. It Used to Be Illegal to Answer.
Santa did not respond to letters written by children. Santa's mail was sent to the Dead Letter Office, along with any other letters addressed to fictitious or undeliverable addresses. While many offered to answer Santa’s letters, technically they weren't allowed to, as opening letters from another person, even Dead Letters, was against the law. But some postmasters violated the rules. Things changed in 1913 after which the Postmaster General introduced an exception to the rules, allowing certain people and organizations to receive Santa's mail. If Santa Claus is to answer them, letters must be addressed to Santa Claus. Families whose names are "Kringle", "Nicholas," or "Nicholas," won't have their mail sent to the wrong address accidentally.
4. Cartoons helped spread the popularity of Writing to Santa.
Thomas Nast's illustration in Harper's Weekly's December 1871 issue is the one to be credited for helping to kickstart the practice. The image shows Santa sitting at his desk, sorting his letters into piles that were labelled with "Letters to rude Children's Parents", and "Letters to good Children's Parents". His illustrations were shared widely and seen by many, making them one of the most popular magazines of the time. The magazine's cover featured Nast's Santa illustration in 1863. After the drawing of Nast, stories of Santa letters ending-up at local post offices rose.
5. The newspapers responded to them.
Prior to the time that the Post Office Department changed its rules to allow the release of Santa letters local newspapers urged youngsters to send letters to them directly. In 1901, Monroe City Democrat offered "two premiums," for the most impressive letter. The Daily Ardmoreite, a newspaper that was based in Ardmore (Oklahoma) was able to offer prizes to three of the top-performing letters in 1922. The winning letters were frequently published including children's personal information. As Santa letters were more efficiently processed, this practice changed.
6. They were fought by charitable groups.
Many well-established charities protested against the Post Office Department changing the guidelines for Santa's letters. They claimed that the change didn't verify the needs of the children writing them and was an inefficient method to provide resources to the poor. One instance of a complaint was submitted by the Charity Organization Society. Its representative addressed the postmaster generalthat "I would like to know if you are considering the unwholesome publicity given to Santa Claus letters in this city as well as other cities during Christmastime last year." These requests were later ignored by the public because the Postmaster General decided that responding to the letters would "enhance children's youthful faith" in Santa Claus.
7. Children aren't always addressing them to the North Pole.
Today, the majority of children who send Santa letters focus their attention towards the North Pole. But for the first few years of Santa mail there were many other destinations. St. Nick was also believed to have set up his activities in Iceland, Ice Street or Cloudville. There are exceptions even today. While the majority of U.S. postal mail addressed to Santa Claus end up at their local post office, those sent to Anchorage or Santa Claus in Indiana (a real city) will be delivered to their local post offices. The cities will respond to them with special letters-answering campaigns. Children in England can send letters to Santa's Grotto located in Reinderland at XM4/5HQ. Canadian children can just write "North Pole" and add the postmark H0H0H0 to ensure the big man gets their notes.
8. Not Everybody Who Answers The Letters Is Squeaky Clean.
Many of the people who responded to Santa's messages are good and exemplary people, there were some situations that ended badly for the individuals and organizations who were involved. Elizabeth Phillips, a Philadelphian woman who performed the role of "Miss Santa Claus", was killed by gas fumes just a few days after she lost her right to respond to Santa's letters (due to a change to the rules of the postal service). John Duval Gluck was appointed to handle Santa's mail in New York City, following the efforts of the Santa Claus Association. Gluck was caught employing the Santa Claus Association's Santa Mail Answering Service for personal gain. Recently an New York City postal worker confessed to theft from Santa Claus: employing Operation Santa Claus at the USPS in New York to give generous New Yorkers her presents.
9. They are monitored by the Post Office in a Database.
In 2006, the U.S. tried to make it official Santa's letters being responded to. In 2006, the U.S. States Postal Service established national guidelines for Operation Santa. These guidelines are administered from several post offices throughout the country. The rules required anyone who wanted to respond to letters to appear in person and show proof of identity with a photo. Three years after, USPS added the rule that all children's addresses be redacted from letters before they go to potential donors, and replaced with an identifier instead. The entire thing is stored in Microsoft Access and only the postal office's "elves have access to it.
10. Santa Has An Email Address.
Santa responds to emails, constantly trying to keep up with the current trends. Santa can be reached through a variety of means that include Email Santa.com, Letters to Santa and Elf HQ. Macy's encourages kids to write to St. Nick as part of their annual "Believe" campaign (children may also take the old-fashioned route and drop letters in the red mailbox in their nearest Macy's store) The folks who run The Elf on the Shelf empire also provide a relationship with St. Nick.
Santa's letters started as missives sent to children rather than being sent. Parents used them to guide their children's actions. Fanny Longfellow, the wife of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow Longfellow wrote letters to her children each season, offering an assessment of their previous actions. As gifts became more prominent in Christmas, this practice was changed. The letters became Christmas wish lists. Some parents still wrote letters to their children written in Santa's voice. J.R.R. could be the most remarkable of these. J.R.R. might be the most well-known. For over 25 years, Tolkien sent his kids with beautifully illustrated messages on Father Christmas. Check santa letter sample for info.
2. At first, children didn't mail them.
Children came up with a variety of imaginative ways to deliver Santa letters where they needed to be in front of the Post Office Department, as the USPS was known to 1971. The children from the U.S. would take their Santa mail to Santa and drop them off at the fireplace. Children from Scotland would accelerate the process by putting their heads towards the chimney, and shouting the Christmas greetings. Latin America had children attach their letters and look on as they drifted off into space.
3. It Used to Be Illegal to Answer.
Santa did not respond to letters written by children. Santa's mail was sent to the Dead Letter Office, along with any other letters addressed to fictitious or undeliverable addresses. While many offered to answer Santa’s letters, technically they weren't allowed to, as opening letters from another person, even Dead Letters, was against the law. But some postmasters violated the rules. Things changed in 1913 after which the Postmaster General introduced an exception to the rules, allowing certain people and organizations to receive Santa's mail. If Santa Claus is to answer them, letters must be addressed to Santa Claus. Families whose names are "Kringle", "Nicholas," or "Nicholas," won't have their mail sent to the wrong address accidentally.
4. Cartoons helped spread the popularity of Writing to Santa.
Thomas Nast's illustration in Harper's Weekly's December 1871 issue is the one to be credited for helping to kickstart the practice. The image shows Santa sitting at his desk, sorting his letters into piles that were labelled with "Letters to rude Children's Parents", and "Letters to good Children's Parents". His illustrations were shared widely and seen by many, making them one of the most popular magazines of the time. The magazine's cover featured Nast's Santa illustration in 1863. After the drawing of Nast, stories of Santa letters ending-up at local post offices rose.
5. The newspapers responded to them.
Prior to the time that the Post Office Department changed its rules to allow the release of Santa letters local newspapers urged youngsters to send letters to them directly. In 1901, Monroe City Democrat offered "two premiums," for the most impressive letter. The Daily Ardmoreite, a newspaper that was based in Ardmore (Oklahoma) was able to offer prizes to three of the top-performing letters in 1922. The winning letters were frequently published including children's personal information. As Santa letters were more efficiently processed, this practice changed.
6. They were fought by charitable groups.
Many well-established charities protested against the Post Office Department changing the guidelines for Santa's letters. They claimed that the change didn't verify the needs of the children writing them and was an inefficient method to provide resources to the poor. One instance of a complaint was submitted by the Charity Organization Society. Its representative addressed the postmaster generalthat "I would like to know if you are considering the unwholesome publicity given to Santa Claus letters in this city as well as other cities during Christmastime last year." These requests were later ignored by the public because the Postmaster General decided that responding to the letters would "enhance children's youthful faith" in Santa Claus.
7. Children aren't always addressing them to the North Pole.
Today, the majority of children who send Santa letters focus their attention towards the North Pole. But for the first few years of Santa mail there were many other destinations. St. Nick was also believed to have set up his activities in Iceland, Ice Street or Cloudville. There are exceptions even today. While the majority of U.S. postal mail addressed to Santa Claus end up at their local post office, those sent to Anchorage or Santa Claus in Indiana (a real city) will be delivered to their local post offices. The cities will respond to them with special letters-answering campaigns. Children in England can send letters to Santa's Grotto located in Reinderland at XM4/5HQ. Canadian children can just write "North Pole" and add the postmark H0H0H0 to ensure the big man gets their notes.
8. Not Everybody Who Answers The Letters Is Squeaky Clean.
Many of the people who responded to Santa's messages are good and exemplary people, there were some situations that ended badly for the individuals and organizations who were involved. Elizabeth Phillips, a Philadelphian woman who performed the role of "Miss Santa Claus", was killed by gas fumes just a few days after she lost her right to respond to Santa's letters (due to a change to the rules of the postal service). John Duval Gluck was appointed to handle Santa's mail in New York City, following the efforts of the Santa Claus Association. Gluck was caught employing the Santa Claus Association's Santa Mail Answering Service for personal gain. Recently an New York City postal worker confessed to theft from Santa Claus: employing Operation Santa Claus at the USPS in New York to give generous New Yorkers her presents.
9. They are monitored by the Post Office in a Database.
In 2006, the U.S. tried to make it official Santa's letters being responded to. In 2006, the U.S. States Postal Service established national guidelines for Operation Santa. These guidelines are administered from several post offices throughout the country. The rules required anyone who wanted to respond to letters to appear in person and show proof of identity with a photo. Three years after, USPS added the rule that all children's addresses be redacted from letters before they go to potential donors, and replaced with an identifier instead. The entire thing is stored in Microsoft Access and only the postal office's "elves have access to it.
10. Santa Has An Email Address.
Santa responds to emails, constantly trying to keep up with the current trends. Santa can be reached through a variety of means that include Email Santa.com, Letters to Santa and Elf HQ. Macy's encourages kids to write to St. Nick as part of their annual "Believe" campaign (children may also take the old-fashioned route and drop letters in the red mailbox in their nearest Macy's store) The folks who run The Elf on the Shelf empire also provide a relationship with St. Nick.