Few children can contain their excitement today as they prepare for Santa’s visit tonight but it wasn’t that long ago that Newfoundlanders and Labradorians didn’t anticipate a pile of presents stacked under the tree. Instead, they relied on things in their stocking.

Folklorist Dale Jarvis says as he gathers memories from people around the province, and one of the most vivid memories many have surrounds the Christmas stocking.

What they found was usually quite sparse compared to what we might find today, says Jarvis.

A few generations ago, things like oranges were a rare treat, and many people remember very fondly getting an orange in their stocking on Christmas morning.