A kid's accidental call to top-secret military hotline during Cold War led to priceless Christmas tradition

Santa Claus may be the symbol of Christmas magic, but we track his journey today thanks to an unlikely mix-up nearly 70 years ago. The NORAD Santa Tracker, now followed by millions of families across the globe, started with a child’s phone call to a top-secret military hotline during the Cold War. A heartwarming chain of events transformed a classified communication line into a global Christmas tradition. In December 1955, during one of the most tense periods of the Cold War, a red emergency phone rang at the Continental Air Defense Command (CONAD), according to KKTV.

The hotline was reserved for military alerts related to potential attacks on North America. U.S. Air Force Colonel Harry Shoup, the officer in charge, answered the call expecting urgent news but instead heard a child’s voice ask, “Is this Santa Claus?” Taken aback, Shoup initially thought it was a prank call and replied curtly. However, he quickly realized the caller was a young child, confused but sincere. After calming the boy, Shoup learned from the child's mother that a Sears department store advertisement had mistakenly printed the hotline number, inviting children to call Santa directly.

The mix-up could have been dismissed as just a minor inconvenience, but Shoup saw an opportunity to turn the situation into something positive. He instructed his team to play along with the calls, answering as Santa Claus and tracking Santa’s fictional journey on their large plexiglass map used for monitoring aircraft. Shoup's lighthearted approach brought unexpected joy during a time of high tension and uncertainty. As the story spread, the phone at CONAD began ringing non-stop with children eager to speak to Santa. To manage the influx of calls, Shoup assigned two airmen to handle “Santa duty,” answering the phone as Santa’s helpers.

The tradition gained momentum rapidly, and by the following year, Shoup’s team had fully embraced their new holiday role. Staff at the command center even added a sleigh and reindeer to their map, symbolizing Santa’s flight across the world. Radio stations got wind of the story and began calling for updates on Santa’s location. Shoup played along by providing detailed reports on Santa’s progress from the North Pole. This interaction between the military and the public created a feel-good story that resonated far and wide. In 1958, CONAD became NORAD, a leading initiative that eventually became known as the Santa Tracker.

When the Continental Air Defense Command (CONAD) transitioned to what is now known as the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD), the Santa tracking tradition carried on and grew each year. By the 1960s, NORAD was issuing press releases on Christmas Eve, sharing updates on Santa’s journey. NORAD even mailed vinyl records to radio stations featuring pre-recorded reports about Santa’s route. In the following decades, these updates expanded to television broadcasts. Today, the NORAD Santa Tracker has become a global phenomenon. Over 1,200 volunteers, including military personnel and civilians, spend Christmas Eve answering calls and emails from children eager to know Santa’s whereabouts, as reported by Good News Network.

Children call in with questions like “How fast is Santa flying?” or “What time do I need to go to bed?” Volunteers answer each question with care, keeping the magic alive. Colonel Shoup, who passed away in 2009, is remembered as the man who turned a wrong number into a heartwarming tradition. He treasured the letters he received from children over the years, keeping them safe in his briefcase.