Backstory: Letters to Santa

12/01/16 • 12 min

2 Listeners

The history of writing letters to Santa has some strange surprises in store for us.

In this episode we hear from Gus Ruiz from the US Postal Service, Nancy Pope from the Smithsonian Institution's Postal Museum, and a Christmas Memory from Kenny in Ontario.

Subscribe to Christmas Past on iTunes or however you get your podcasts. Search for "Christmas Past podcast" on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. Visit www.christmaspastpodcast.com for show notes. Write me at [email protected]

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Christmas Past: The Fascinating Stories Behind Our Favorite Holiday's Traditions makes a great gift for all the Christmas lovers in your life. Available in hardcover and audiobook. Find it wherever books are sold, like Amazon and Barnes & Noble.

The history of writing letters to Santa has some strange surprises in store for us.

In this episode we hear from Gus Ruiz from the US Postal Service, Nancy Pope from the Smithsonian Institution's Postal Museum, and a Christmas Memory from Kenny in Ontario.

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Previous Episode

Backstory: Gingerbread Houses

2 Recommendations

For centuries, gingerbread has been connected with all kinds of celebrations and holidays. And what could be more Christmassy than a gingerbread house? In this episode, we look at the history of gingerbread and the somewhat mysterious origins of the gingerbread house.

We'll hear from my mom, who made a gingerbread house every year when I was growing up. We'll also hear from Melissa Ferrar from San Francisco's Fairmont Hotel, which builds a life size gingerbread house annually.

Subscribe to Christmas Past on iTunes or however you get your podcasts. Search for "Christmas Past podcast" on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. Visit www.christmaspastpodcast.com for show notes.

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Next Episode

Backstory: Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer

The story of Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer is a classic underdog story, but maybe not the way you think. In this episode, we discuss the unlikely journey of Robert L. May from workaday copywriter to creator of an icon.

In this episode we'll hear from Peter Carini, a librarian at Dartmouth College, which holds a collection of May's work. And we'll hear a Christmas memory from Kathy in New Jersey.

Don't forget to subscribe to Christmas Past on iTunes, Google Play, or however you get your podcasts.

Search for "Christmas Past podcast" on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram for more Christmas history and vintage Christmas content.

Visit www.christmaspastpodcast.com for show notes and more. Contact me at [email protected]

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