Mall Santas in Spokane throughout history
Times have changed, but the mall Santa remains a beloved fixture of Spokane's Christmas scene.
Section:Gallery
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1927: The Santa Claus at the Palace Department Store in Spokane is surrounded by children waiting to tell him their Christmas list. The Santa Claus character became popular in the 1800s, following Clement Moore’s poem “A Visit From St. Nicholas” and influenced by many folkloric and religious traditions. Department store Santas date back to the mid-1800s.
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In this 1933 photo, Spokane's colorful and beloved Santa Claus, William G. F. Pratt, 92, poses for a photo. Pratt will be remembered by Spokane children and grownups for the realistic St. Nick he portrayed with his natural white hair and beard. He was employed for many holiday seasons by Sears Roebuck and company.
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1948: Kenon Cresap, 2, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Ray Cresap gave Santa (James Goodwin) a hearty handshake and a beaming smile.
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1950: Santa forsook his reindeer to give Spokane youngsters a thrill they’ll never forget. He flew over the residential section in a helicopter for about an hour and then landed on a parking lot behind the Littleton and Hugo service station at Main and Monroe.
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In this 1950 photo, Santa forsook his reindeer today to give Spokane youngsters a thrill they'll never forget. He flew over the residential section in a helicopter for about an hour and then landed on a parking lot behind the Littleton & Hugo service station at Main And Monroe. Santa all decked out in his Chiristmas outfit gets out and starts for the grandstand.
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In this 1951 photo, several hundred excited youngsters, accompanied by smiling parents, lined downtown sidewalks at 8:30 this morning to see Santa Claus ride thorugh the streets. There being no snow, old St. Nicholas left his reindeer and sleigh at the North Pole and hitched a ride on a marine corps jeep. Santa is shown perched on the back seat of the jeep and waving at youngsters at the Riverside-Howard intersection. The jeep is towing a wagon loaded with toys. Several of Santa's helpers took their places in stores following the ride. They will talk to youngsters until just before Christmas.
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In later years, elaborate Christmas villages sprung up around Santa during the holidays at the Crescent Department Store in downtown Spokane. In 1952, when this Santa photo was taken, the setting was still fairly simple.
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In this 1953 photo, Santa Claus visits with three small boys.
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In this 1960 photo, Santa Claus greets the crowd.
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1963: Santa Claus visits children during Christmas.
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In this 1967 photo, Santa Claus chats with a little fan.
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In this 1967 photo, Santa Claus taking a break.
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In this 1970 photo, Paul Hanson Jr, 3, gets down to the business of letting Santa know what he has in mind for Christmas. Beneath the beard and suit is Arthur Vietrke.
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In this 1970 photo, Santa Claus greets little kids
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In this 1972 photo, Angela Nelson, 7, of Spokane, was one of the first youngsters to climb up on Santa's knee and give him hints on what she would like to find under the tree Christmas morning. The annual Christmas shopping season got under way and was marked by the arrival of Santa and stores serving early bird shoppers.
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In this 1973 photo, Santa Clause greets little Kerri Reed.
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In this 1973 photo, Santa pauses to lend an ear to children large and small, to believers one and all. Among the tiny visitors of Santa's helper, Dave Saugen at a downtown store were Donol, 6, and Sabrina, 4, children of Mr. and Mrs. Roger Fosseen.
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In this 1976 photo, children tell Santa Claus their Christmas wishes.
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In this 1976 photo, Santa arrives in a helicopter at Riverfront Park.
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In this 1977 photo, Santa is touring the shopping centers and also chatted with kids of all ages at the cystic fibrosis "Santa House" this past weekend. Children visiting Santa in his home found a program of fairyland characters, stories and refreshments. A small admission price went to the cystic fibrosis fund drive.
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In this 1977 photo, Ray R. Woods a.k.a Santa Claus with little Sarah Lyman celebrate Christmas.
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In this 1977 photo, Beth and Aimee, daughters of Mr. and Mrs. Robert Landwehr, tell Santa (Don Wolfe) about their Christmas lists.
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In this 1980 photo, St. Nick stops for coffee and his unannounced visit to the Under the Clock coffee shop at The Crescent caught at least one woman by surprise. St. Nick in this case is Charles Berglund, a Crescent Santa .
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1982: Santa Claus plays Atari Video game on a break.
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1984: Dan Blankenship as Santa Claus visits with Jay Kramer.
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1985: Witso Rassamuson reads the newspaper as Santa Claus.
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In this 1986 photo, Santa Claus, a.k.a Neal Rasmussen, tries to coax Courtney Peterson into revealing what the youngster wants for Christmas. Santa's arrival at the Coeur d'Alene Mall and other North Pole outposts coincided with wave of eager holiday shoppers.
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1990: Kristi Van Blaricum had to be coaxed from behind a counter to join her sister Emily on Santa’s lap downtown.
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In this 1991 photo, Santa arrives at the Shadle Shopping Center to a throng of kids eager to relay their Christmas wishes.
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In this 1991 photo, Seth Morris, 2 1/2 of Bermerton appears a little uneasy during a visit with Santa Claus at Silver Lake Mall in Coeur d'Alene.
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In this 1993 photo, Bobby, with antlers, and Shelby, a pair of American Eskimo dogs, smile for a picture with Santa Sunday at the Evergreen Pet Shop in Spokane Valley. The pair belong to Lynn and Becky Sackman of Lind, Washington.
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In this 1993 photo, Mike Kiesbuy, a Silver Lake Mall Santa and a clown walk in the mall to greet children.
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Jackson Bennett, age 6, of Spokane and his sisters McKenna, age3 and Elysssa, age 11 visit Santa in River Park Square on Dec. 3, 2005. A trip to see Old Saint Nick would be fun thing to do during the winter school holiday.
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Santa Clause enters River Park Square for a Christmas tree lighting as crowds of children and their parents react on Friday, Nov. 17, 2017, in Spokane, Wash.
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Santa arrives Friday, Nov. 16, 2018 at River Park Square mall in Spokane.
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Santa arrives Friday, Nov. 16, 2018 at River Park Square mall in Spokane.
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