Santa Claus

As those of you with young children in the house know, today is all about the preparation for Santa Claus visit this evening. Ever wonder about the history of good Ole’ St. Nick? USDA Historical expert Anne Effland shares that the United State’s version of Father Christmas, St. Nicholas or Kris Kringle’s really begin with Dr. Clement Clark Moore’s poem written in 1823 , “Twas the Night Before Christmas”.
Effland: “It includes a lot reindeer on the roof and the stockings by the hearth. All those bits and pieces that we associate with the Santa Claus of Legend.”
To add to some of the poem-inspired tradition was our image of Santa compliments of Thomas Nast’s cartoons for the Harper’s Weekly magazine between 1860 and 1866.
Effland: “Over that course of time, that Santa that we know evolved through his cartoons. Including the idea that Santa was at the North Pole, that he was building toys all year long, that he got letters from kids requesting toys, that he kept track of which kids behaved or didn’t behave.”
We can thank marketers in the 1930s for their Coca-Cola ad campaign which gave our Santa a more grandfatherly, rounder appearance through a series of ads and calendars.
May Santa’s stop at your house this year, bring you Christmas magic and Joy
Here is wishing you and your family a very Merry Christmas from all of us here at the Ag Information Network of the West.