St Nick "Stockings" at Trout Insurance! 

Join us for Weaverville's Candlelight Stroll December 6th! 5-8pm, 29 N Main St.

St Nicholas & The Story of Christmas Oranges

​The legend of "St Nicholas" comes from the late 3rd century in a region of coastal Turkey. In those days, fathers needed to provide a dowry for the marriage of their daughters, else the girls might be sold into slavery. Nicholas befriended one poor working man's dad, living from paycheck to paycheck, who had three daughters. Nick, for short, secretly provided the gold necessary for their marriage.

In one variation, late at night, he tossed through the window, orbs of pure gold. These somehow landed in the socks that were placed above the fireplace to dry. The father finally discovered his benefactor and was grateful for Nick’s generosity. His legendary habit of secret gift-giving gave rise to the folklore of Santa Claus, aka Saint Nick.

In America, the new railroad lines in the late 1800’s, were able to easily transport the orange harvest of central Florida to the population centers of to Northeast and Midwest. The crop started to come in mid December. Just in time for Christmas and as Charles Dickens wrote “the stockings hung by the chimney with care". The bright color of the orange represents St. Nickolas’s gifts of gold.

Join us at Trout Insurance during Candlelight Stroll the evening of December 6. "Nick" will be giving out oranges, golden chocolate coins in our newest tote bag (sustainable cotton!).

As it will happen, the Candlelight Stroll in Weaverville falls on the feast day of St Nicholas: the patron saint of children, toymakers, sailors, brewers, pawnbrokers, merchants and repentant thieves.

We look forward to seeing you!

Visit Weaverville for more details about the event!