Santa History

Yes, Santa schools are real, they’ve existed for nearly 90 years, and what they teach is more substantive than you’d think.

The Santa industry has been around for a century. Sign language has been around longer. So why is it still so rare to find a Santa who can communicate with a Deaf child?

Most American families have visited a mall Santa, but very few know how the industry behind those visits actually operates. Here’s a short tour.

Charles Graves became the first widely-known Deaf Santa Claus, but Deaf Santas have appeared in Deaf schools and Deaf communities for far longer. Here’s some of the history that came before.

The Santa we know — red suit, white beard, North Pole, professional industry — is the product of a 1,700-year evolution. Here’s the short version.