Kingsport Christmas Parade

KINGSPORT — Santa Claus came to the Kingsport Christmas parade atop Ladder Truck No. 1 of the Kingsport Fire Department on a nippy Saturday night this year. With lights flashing and a siren sounding, he went around the eastern half of Church Circle downtown before finishing the parade and returning to Church Circle for the Christmas tree lighting a little later. From golf carts and trucks and cars adorned with Christmas lights to floats on trailers and flatbeds, Christmas arrived in the Model City on Saturday night, as did colder temperatures in the low 30s after the thermometer peaked at near 50 earlier in the partly cloudy day. The marching bands of Dobyns-Bennett and West Ridge high schools set the mood with music, with West Ridge starting off near the beginning of the parade and D-B coming right before the grand finale: Santa. This year's event was cold but not rainy; the only precipitation was manmade. While waiting for Santa to get from the end of the parade route back to Church Circle, the crowd was led in singing some Christmas song. Also, Mayor Paul Montgomery spoke briefly, saying that 2025 was a good year for Kingsport and its citizens but that he believed 2026 would be a better one. After the countdown for the tree lighting and its illumination, the crowd mostly scattered. Some went over to the artificial snow generated by Glen Bruce Park in the Christmas tree display, reminiscent of the artificial snow from one of the floats. Meanwhile, some children and adults tarried on the stage for photo opportunities with the jolly old elf, and some children, including two boys, took the chance to speak personally with Santa. OTHER AREA PARADES Also holding Christmas parades Saturday were Church Hill, Rogersville, Gate City and Johnson City. Norton's Christmas parade came Sunday, Dec. 7, while Bristol and Jonesville held Christmas parades Dec. 4. Back in Kingsport on Saturday, a food truck rally near Church Circle served hot food, into the evening, while a Holiday Market also on Broad Street included vendors selling everything from vintage books to handmade wood items. Santa also visited, with children receiving free photos of their visits with him in Glen Bruce Park. The Downtown Kingsport Association also promoted a shopping event, Jingle and Mingle, downtown. Elsewhere in the region, upcoming Christmas parades Saturday, Dec. 13 include Bloomingdale at 10 a.m., Blountville at 2 p.m. and Jonesborough at 6 p.m. CHRISTMAS IN THE COUNTRY Other holiday events in the Model City on Saturday included Christmas in the Country at the Exchange Place, a living history farm presenting life on an mid-19th century farmstead. Fresh greenery, handcrafted wreaths and roping, unique folk arts and handcrafts and traditional holiday foods were for sale. The celebration also featured hands-on opportunities for all ages and demonstrations of wintertime activities on the 1850s farmstead, as volunteers make ginger cakes and cinnamon waffles, dip candles and craft ironware in the forge. The Yule Log ceremony at the end of the festival offered a chance to participate in an age-old Christmas tradition, sing carols, sip wassail and encourage luck for the New Year. Mark Selby, a volunteer who leads the yule log event every year, said the tradition includes burning holly, which represents burning the woes of the past year and to protect people from ghosts. Wine or other alcohol is poured into the fire to be sure the new log catches fire, and it is helped along with some kindling and a piece of last year's yule log. Corn is traditionally thrown on the fire to encourage a good harvest in the new year. For photos of the Exchange Place event and other activities mentioned here, go to a photo collection inside Monday's print Times News, and for more photos go to the Times News website.