NORAD Santa Tracker - A Brief History Lesson
The tradition began before NORAD (North American Aerospace Defense Command) was created. This is something that happened with CONAD (Continental Air Defense Command).
In 1955, Sears posted an ad in The Gazette, a newspaper in Colorado Springs, with a number children could call to talk to Santa. The only problem? That number was a secret military hotline. Or at least it was if you misdialed and accidentally flipped the last two numbers.
U.S. Air Force Colonel Harry Shoup was the one to pick up the phone. You would expect it to be a General or the president calling about an attack on America. But no, it's a little boy calling to talk to Santa.
Shoup thought the call was a joke, maybe from inside the center, and got mad at the child. After the child started sobbing, he realized this was the real deal and not someone who can do a really good impression of a little boy.
He then went on to play the role of Santa for the child and asked if he'd been a good boy that year and listened to his wishlist.
Later, on Christmas Eve, Shoup came in to find Santa on their plexiglass map of North America used to track unidentified aircraft. Someone offered to erase it, but Shoup told them to leave it up and he called the public affairs officer, Colonel Barney Oldfield. He told Oldfield to tell the press CONAD was tracking Santa.
The next year, Oldfield told Shoup the press was awaiting news of CONAD tracking Santa again. Shoup agreed they should post it again. This is where the tradition was born.
In 1958, NORAD replaced CONAD and took over with tracking Santa. Today, people can go to noradsanta.org or call 1 877 HI-NORAD on Christmas Eve to find out where Santa is.
The story has gotten warped over time, according to Wikipedia. Please know that all information in this blog may or may not be true, as I'm not quite sure what actually happened. According to Wikipedia, it was only one boy calling on November 30, 1955 and not a flood of calls on Christmas Eve. Also according to Wikipedia, there was not a typo in the ad; the boy misdialed. Even Shoup's family has a different version of what happened. I don't even know if the number was actually some sort of hotline or if it was literally just Shoup's desk phone number.
Corrections, questions, and additions to this blog are welcome!
Videos to Check Out
Emily Rice - I WAS A SANTA TRACKER🎅 | NORAD TRACKS SANTA 2020
Emily Rice - I Tracked Santa on Christmas Eve | NORAD Tracks Santa 2021
FOX 26 Houston - NORAD's Santa Tracker gives you behind-the-scenes look
CBC News - How Norad's Santa Tracker tradition got started
WHAS11 - Here's a behind-the-scenes look of the Norad Santa Tracker
References
StoryCorps - NORAD's Santa Tracker began with a typo and a good sport
HuffPost - NORAD's Santa Tracker Started With A Single Phone Call 69 Years Ago
History.com - The Wrong Number That Launched the Santa Tracker
NORAD Santa Tracker - HQ Section
Wikipedia - NORAD Tracks Santa
