Who is the only fictional character to have their own U.S. ZIP code?

The U.S. Postal Service typically only hands out unique ZIP codes when someone gets a massive volume of mail, for example, a large corporation or university campus. To date, Smokey the Bear is the only fictional character to receive a unique ZIP code.

Smokey the Bear is an American campaign and advertising icon of the U.S. Forest Service. He was created in 1944 by the Ad Council as a mascot for fire-prevention efforts during World War II, when lumber was a critical war resource. The Public Service Announcements became extremely popular in the early 1960s, and Smokey began receiving so many fan letters that, in 1964, the U.S. Postal Service granted him his own ZIP code: 20252.

Readers may wonder why Santa doesn't have his own ZIP as well. In part, that’s because the USPS actually sends letters addressed to Santa to the town of Santa Claus, Indiana. The General Electric factory in Schenectady, New York also gets a fair share of Dear Santa mail, thanks to their ZIP code, which is 12345. (Many writers apparently believe that is the North Pole Zip.)

While Smokey's fan mail has slowed down since the '60s, he still stands as the only fictional character to have a unique ZIP code.

*Yes, there was a real ‘Smokey Bear’. His name was not Smokey (the) Bear. The real Smokey was an American Black Bear cub rescued from a fire in Lincoln National Forest in New Mexico in 1950. The fictional ‘Smokey the Bear’ predated the cub.