Although most of the pieces have long since been removed, some Santa Cruz County residents can still remember the Christmas-themed park known as Santa’s Village that was once located off of Highway 17 – near the exit that still bears its name.
Scotts Valley was home to Santa’s Village for more than 20 years, during which time over a million visitors ran through the park that evoked Christmas glee year round.
Santa’s Village opened its doors on May 30, 1957 and remained open to the public until 1979. Elves operated the rides, cute animals hopped about, holiday treats were sold, and Santa and Mrs. Claus could be seen at their posts.
Judi Lind, a Scotts Valley resident who worked at the park when she was 17, remembers dressing as an elf and operating the Christmas Tree ride.
“We wore green leotards, a little green shirt, and a leather vest,” Lind explained. “We had elf shoes which actually had pointy toes and bells.”
There were lots of cute features including a big egg that guests could walk through, log cabins, gift shops, a puppet theater, and a petting zoo, she said.
“One thing that I do remember vividly,” she said, “was that in the morning, they would let all the baby goats out from the barn and they’d come bounding down from the barn and then they would jump up on the mushrooms and butt each other off.”
Aside from giant colorful cement mushrooms and cute baby animals, according to an article in a 1999 publication of the Scotts Valley Chamber of Commerce, Santa had a huge mailbox, creekside toy factory, lollipop tree, giant candy canes, gingerbread house, reindeer barn, gift shop, and even a gas station.
Mrs. Claus’ kitchen served food, refreshments, and holiday treats like gingerbread men and Santa pops – which were always popular with the kids.
Many local careers began at Santa’s Village, including that of the late Carl Hanson, who served as the park’s original Santa Claus. He would go on to became famous as Hocus Pocus the Clown, and continued to entertain children via his own TV show.
Eric Taylor, a member of the Scotts Valley Historical Society and cultural resource preservation commissioner for the City of Scotts Valley, also worked at the park when he was 15.
“I helped build the reindeer barn,” he said. “…And then I worked taking care of the reindeer for a summer of two.”
Taylor also operated the reindeer sled ride and said that he was accused once or twice of abusing the reindeer when their antlers would shed and bleed.
“They were actual Alaskan reindeer and they would grow their antlers and they had felt on them in springtime,” Taylor said. “Then they would scratch it against the railings and it would curl off and bleed and people would get upset, thinking that I was causing harm to the reindeer.”
The historic Polo Barn, which was originally located behind the gift shop, was the last remaining building to be removed from the property. It was demolished in June of this year.
“My mother never thought it (Santa’s Village) would close because it really was a cool place for kids,” Taylor said.
In an effort to preserve the memory of Scotts Valley’s lost attractions, the Scotts Valley Historical Society has salvaged some pieces of the Polo Barn and two of Santa’s Village’s authentic giant cement mushrooms – which can be seen at McDorsa Park.
“You mention you worked at Santa’s Village and it always gets a response,” Lind said. “It was very authentic and it was a great job for a high schooler.”
