Persistent snow this month has caused some to suggest that Anchorage is approaching a new record.

Ha! Not even close.

As of Tuesday, the official snowfall for December stood at 25.6 inches, well short of the 41.6 inches recorded in December of 1955.

Not that anyone would say we're having a lighter-than-usual snow year, or even a normal one. The average December in Anchorage has 14.8 inches of snow -- that's for the whole month. And the average total from the first measurable snow of the season through Dec. 26 is 35.7 inches. This year we had received 61.4 inches by that day. That's almost as much as we usually get over an entire winter, 69.5 inches.

Five cumulative feet of snow can cause griping if your chores include shoveling, or rejoicing if your passions include skiing or snowmachining. But it pales next to the more than 10 feet of snow received in the winters of 1954-55 (132.8 inches) and 1955-56 (128.8 inches).

There were 121.5 inches in 1994-95, 111.5 inches in 2003-2004 and 111.0 inches in 1948-49, rounding out our five snowiest years.

With a cold snap predicted for the rest of the week and no further precipitation in the forecast, it's unlikely that this December will even make it to contender status. But, as a long shot, it could happen. The last 15.6 inches of that record-setting December of 1955 came on Dec. 29, a one-day record at the time. (It was buried in the great St. Patrick's Day Blizzard of March 17, 2002, when 22 inches fell on the city.)

As formidable as these records are, there are other extreme snow events that will make even the toughest Anchorage residents shudder. Deep in the National Weather Service data where we found this information is the city's record for the longest stretch of consecutive days of living with snow. From Oct. 23, 1971, to May 3, 1972, there was snow on the ground measuring half an inch or more -- every single day -- for a total stretch of 193 days buried under a coat of white.

Then we have the maximum snow depth, 47 inches, recorded on New Year's Eve, 1955, and New Year's Day 1956.

Now there's some auld acquaintance to be forgot.