Santa Claus, known as Saint Nicholas or Kris Kringle, has a long history steeped in Christmas traditions. Today, he is the jolly man in red who brings toys to good girls and boys on Christmas Eve, but his story stretches back to the 3rd century. 

The legend of Santa Claus can be traced back to a monk named St. Nicholas. It is believed that Nicholas was born sometime around 280 A.D. in Patara, near Myra, Turkey. Much admired for his piety and kindness, he gave away all of his inherited wealth and traveled the countryside, helping the poor and sick.

Over the years, he became known as the protector of children and sailors. His feast day is celebrated on the anniversary of his death, December 6. By the Renaissance, St. Nicholas was the most popular saint in Europe.

St. Nicholas made his first inroads into American popular culture towards the end of the 18th century. In December 1773, and again in 1774, a New York newspaper reported that groups of Dutch families had gathered to honor the anniversary of his death.

Santa Claus evolved from Nick’s Dutch nickname, Sinter Klaas, a shortened form of Sint Nikolaas (Dutch for Saint Nicholas). In 1804, John Pintard distributed woodcuts of St. Nicholas at the New York Historical Society's annual meeting. The engraving contains now-familiar Santa images, including stockings filled with toys and fruit, hung over a fireplace. 

In 1809, Washington Irving helped to popularize the Sinter Klaas stories when he referred to St. Nicholas as the patron saint of New York in his book, The History of New York. 

Gift-giving, has been an essential part of the Christmas celebration since the early 19th century. Stores began to advertise Christmas shopping in 1820. By the 1840s, newspapers created separate sections for holiday advertisements, often featuring images of the newly-popular Santa Claus. 

In 1841, thousands of children visited a Philadelphia shop to see a life-size Santa Claus model. It was only a matter of time before stores began to attract children, and their parents, with the lure of a peek at a “live” Santa Claus. 

Perhaps the most iconic department store Santa is Kris Kringle in the 1947 classic Santa Claus movie “Miracle on 34 Street.” A young Natalie Wood plays a little girl who believes Kris Kringle when he says he is the real Santa Claus.

If you can't visit Santa this year, keep the dream alive with this colorful puzzle.

The perfect gift for Christmas wooden puzzlers, Santa fans, and Christmas Wooden Puzzle enthusiasts, this traditional Christmas wooden puzzle can be done time and again. Our Christmas wooden puzzle artists have included many whimsy shaped Christmas wooden puzzle pieces that match the theme of the painting, and we have integrated them in ways that will delight and surprise you as you put the Christmas wooden puzzle together.