Day 13 September 10, 2025 Owensboro 95 miles
Today the weather forecast said partly cloudy with a high of 84 and no rain. Looking out the window the skies are completely cloud covered and some rain is falling. It rained off and on a couple of more times. By afternoon the sun out and the temperature up. Partly cloudy must mean part of the day is cloudy and part is sunny.
Rob tried his temporary fix to the headlight problem. The fix was very temporary. The headlight flickered for only a few miles. We will avoid any night driving until we get home and find some replacement parts.
Our main destination was Santa Claus Indiana. We stopped at the Santa Claus Museum where we learned two incredible stories. We also saw all things Santa and a room full of model trains. Santa and Mrs Claus were also present.
The first story is how the town got its name. The original settlement was called Santa Fee. When they applied for a post office they were told a Santa Fe Indiana already existed. The town met to decide on a new name. While discussing options the wind blew the door open. A boy yelled Santa Claus is coming. And the town was named.
The second story is about Jim Yellig. He served in the Navy before and during WWI. His ship invited children on at Christmas. He played Santa. He was so impressed by how the kids reacted that he prayed “if I survive the war I will always be Santa. He survived and became Santa until shortly before he died at the age of 90.
On the property is the original post office, a church built in 1820 and a 22 foot statue of Santa done in concrete.
After lunch at the Santa Lodge with the largest pork chops we had seen it was an easy drive back to town. This allowed everyone to prepare for the freshman banquet tonight. Only a few needed to prepare. We did laundry.
The banquet was in an event center right on the river next to the big blue bridge over the Ohio River. They are replacing the flooring on the bridge so we couldn’t cross it. After dark the bridge lights up and changes colors. Really very pretty.
Spoffords Travel 