Woman finds letter written to Santa by her uncle in 1951

A woman was stunned when she found a letter to Santa... written by her uncle in 1951.

Annie Gough was thrilled when a perfectly intact letter from a then ten-year-old Tony Hayden begging Father Christmas for a pellet gun, was discovered in her house after being hidden for more than six decades.

Annie, from Naas in Kildare, said that the letter is even more special to her and her family seeing as Tony tragically passed away five years ago.

She said: “It was in the house where my mother grew up with her siblings and where I grew up myself.

“My mother has now been moved to a nursing home and I am doing the house up to move into it with my own family.

“The builders were moving an unused fireplace from one of the upstairs bedrooms in October when they found the letter perfectly folded up and tucked in behind it.”
Despite being more than 64 years old, Tony’s neatly written letter is still perfectly legible.

It is dated November 21 1951 and reads: “Dear Santa Claus,

“I hope you are well. Please send me a pellet gun.

“I remain yours truly, Tony Hayden.”

37-year-old Annie laughed about the amusement it has given her family since they found it.

She said: “My husband was the one the builders told about it, he called me up and said, ‘You’ll never guess what happened.’

“It was amazing that after all this time it was in perfect condition. s

“The only person who would be able to tell us if Tony ever got the pellet gun is my other uncle and he cannot remember.

“It brought a smile to my mother’s face and she’s still laughing now about the ‘I remain yours truly’ part.”

Ms Gough spoke of the significance the letter holds for her.

She said: “I’ve heard a few stories recently of things like this happening to people but you never expect it to happen to you.

“I suppose after all the time that this house has belonged to my family I was bound to find something eventually.

“Unfortunately, Tony passed away five years ago after a long battle with cancer.

“His wife and his children live in Naas and I’m still close to everybody.

“This letter is special and it makes you appreciate the house and its history.”

Annie has now passed the letter onto a photographer friend to have copies made and framed, one of which she plans to hang in the house where it was found.

“This letter really feels like a small slice of history to my family, it is a real keepsake'' she said...