Best Hoosier City – Santa Claus, IN?
With such a charming town name, Christmas-themed street signs, businesses decorated for the season 365 days a year, the friendliest Hoosier hospitality, and nostalgic Holiday attractions, what better Hoosier City is there to visit than Santa Claus, Indiana: America’s Christmas Hometown?
Great Reasons Santa Claus, Indiana is Wonderful
As America’s Christmas Hometown, Santa Claus, Indiana, has a lot to offer to anyone passing through. Visit the nostalgic Santa’s Candy Castle, the educational Santa Claus Museum, or the gigantic Santa Claus Christmas Store. The town is Santa Claus’ summer home so there are always opportunities to pose with Santa himself or one of his many oversized statues to take a special family photo.
History of Santa Claus, Indiana
When the Germans settled to this area in the mid 1800’s, they had no idea what this place would one day become. Many of the early immigrants hoped of a new and improved way of life. They weren’t originally attracted to this area because of the name. In fact, the area was known as Santa Fe back then.
Originally, the town of Santa Claus was named Santa Fe. However, there was already another Santa Fe, Indiana, so the town had to choose a new name. Local lore tells of a town meeting around a wood stove in a little log church on Christmas Eve in 1852. The residents were deliberating over what to name their community when a winter’s gust blew the doors to the church open. Sleigh bells could be heard in the distance and the children started exclaiming it must be Santa Claus! The residents decided the town should indeed be named Santa Claus.
The town’s name did not peak interest until 1914 when Santa Claus’ 14th postmaster, James Martin, took it upon himself to answer the children’s letters to Santa Claus. Soon after, people started to flock to the post office to receive a special holiday postmark during the Christmas season.
The first tourist attraction came in 1935, when Milton Harris built Santa’s Candy Castle. One year later Harris developed the Enchanted Forest with different toy companies that shipped their packages out with the Santa Claus, IN postmark. Just a few days later in 1935, Carl Barrett created Santa Claus Park which highlighted a 22-foot statue of Santa Claus.
Louis Koch settled the area in the 1940s. In 1946 he started what now is considered to be southern Indiana’s largest tourist attraction. Santa Claus Land changed its name to Holiday World in 1984 and added the Splashin’ Safari water park in 1993. Today the Park has developed into one of the nation’s best family parks. Holiday World & Splashin’ Safari boasts the #1 Wooden Roller Coaster, The Voyage, and the World’s Longest Water Coaster, The Wildebeest.
Holiday World is the Best
If you’re looking for family fun, you’ve found it in Santa Claus, Indiana, with Holiday World & Splashin’ Safari! The world’s first theme park is known for its friendly staff and clean park. Holiday World is home to three of the world’s top wooden roller coasters including The Legend and The Voyage!
The park is celebrating its 64 seasons of family fun with this year’s newest addition, The Wildebeest! This two-and-a-half minute ride travels through one-third of a mile, flying through a series of seven hills, and is the World’s Longest Water Coaster! Splashin’ Safari is a sparkling clean water park with lots of family water rides, two wave pools, two action rivers, and special water-play areas for the little ones. With free soft drinks, free sunscreen, free parking, free inner tubes and a smoke-free environment, your family will want to make a vacation at Holiday World & Splashin’ Safari an annual event. They really are #1 for Family Fun!
Spencer County Information
- Spencer County Abraham Lincoln Bicentennial
- Access Spencer County, Indiana
- Association for a Better Rockport
- Friends of Lincoln State Park
- Indiana Abraham Lincoln Bicentennial Commission
- Lincoln Heritage Public Library
- Lincolnland Economic Development Corporation
- Spencer County Historical Society
- Spencer County Public Library Branches
- Spencer County Regional Chamber of Commerce