Letters to Santa

Waycross Evening Herald, December 22, 1911

The tradition of children writing letters to Santa Claus  rose in popularity in the second half of the nineteenth century in the United States. By the early 1900s, newspapers in south Georgia began publishing these letters in their December issues. They provide amusing and sometimes poignant insight into Christmas culture, familial relationships, charity, war, and consumerism from a century ago. The letters hint at other traditions related to Santa Claus, including his list of good and bad children and the practice of leaving foods for him to eat. The letters reproduced below and hundreds of others can be found in the South Georgia Historic Newspapers Archive.

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Waycross Journal, December 16, 1902

 

Bainbridge Search Light, December 15, 1911

 

Daily Times Enterprise (Thomasville), December 24, 1918

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Valdosta Times, December 12, 1905

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Americus Times-Recorder, December 11, 1913

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Daily Times Enterprise (Thomasville), December 24, 1918

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Americus Times-Recorder, December 11, 1913

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