The More You Know - NORAD Santa Tracker Started In 1955 By Accident
One of the best parts about becoming a parent is experiencing Christmas with a brand new perspective. In many ways, it's as though you get to Men In Black eye-thingy it and relive it for the first time alongside your child. Like basically everyone, I love Christmas. My wife loves Christmas. We have plans out our hineys for the entire month of December as a result.
If I had to pick one I am most excited about though it has to be Christmas morning. My daughter will be just about 1.5 years old so although we have a ways to go on her fully grasping Christmas and watching Home Alone on repeat, I trust she will get excited when she sees what Santa brought her. Heck, just this morning when we were driving to school she said, "You know dad, I've been talking to my friends at school and Suzie said that due to the national debt, we should all strive to cut back on gift giving this year." To which I replied, "Ok."
Nevertheless, before Santa arrives in Jersey he has a ton of other toys to deliver and there is nothing better than following along to see where he is in the world. Thanks to NORAD (North American Aerospace Defense Command) we know where jolly old St. Nick is at all times.
What I'm sure a lot of you don't know is where the tracker even came from. Lucky for you and your kids, I'm here so you don't sound dumb when they inevitably ask you.
NORAD's Santa Tracker started on this day in 1955 with a simple typo.
A local Sears store in Colorado Springs ran a dial Santa ad in 1955. However, the number was a misprint. Instead of listing the number for Sears' Santa hotline, it posted the number for the Continental Air Defense Command Center.
On Christmas Eve 1955, Colonel Harry Shoup began receiving calls while working at NORAD from kids asking to speak with Santa Claus.
Instead of telling the kids that they dialed the wrong number, Shoup said that he wasn't Santa Claus but he could track him on radar.
All night, Shoup and his team fielded calls, giving kids details about Santa's location as he and his reindeer flew through the sky to deliver gifts to children.
This is how a tradition was born. NORAD opened its lines for Santa Tracking every year since.
Big shout to COL Shoup who could've been a grinch and told those kids to kick rocks. Instead, he warmed their hearts by letting them know where he was and to get to bed soon. Parents everywhere rejoiced.
Merry Christmas!!!! (it's okay, we're saying it again)
P.S. I don't ever plan on doing Elf on the shelf. It's creepy and every parent says managing that guy is a pain.