10/22/2026
YOU WON'T WANT TO MISS THIS. . . Christmas at the Parker Museum!
Spencer’s Parker Museum has been decoratively under construction this fall as a local historic-preservation group works to prepare the home for Christmas-themed tours November 13, 14, 15.
The 1916 Arts and Crafts Movement home, located at 300 East Third Street, had new life breathed into it this past year when the living spaces and basement were restaged with the help of the Spencer High School No Boundaries Group and the local Romanzo A. Coates Questers Club following the 2024 Spencer Flood.
As the holiday season approaches, the Questers have once again volunteered to help present the home with a festive and historic interpretation. The home is filled with unique and local artifacts that were donated by the Parker Family and many Clay County residents over the years since the inception of the museum in 1969. Many of the historic items will be on display along with a variety of vintage holiday pieces from the private collections of the Questers members.
According to Questers President Karen Cretsinger, “Our group cherishes the Parker Home in Spencer. It is indeed a local treasure. Our goal in decorating the home is to give glimpses into Christmases past at the Parker. Several of the Questers have brought items from their personal collections, which will be intermingled to enhance the tour.”
One Christmas decoration to be displayed at the Parker will include a detailed corn husk nativity collection, hand-made by the late Betty Schwarck of Spencer. The nativity includes more than two dozen creche pieces made from husks of corn grown northeast of Spencer. Betty and her husband Myron (Bud) raised several varieties of corn to provide the best husks for her projects. She made multiple sets of the nativity for her family members, each taking about six months to create. Schwarck’s collection to be displayed is owned by her son Curt and Julie Schwarck of Spencer, who agreed to share the collection during the three-day museum Christmas event. It will be on display in the museum music room sitting atop an 1880’s square grand piano.
The Parker home was built for the Clay County Fair’s first president, Roy E. Webb, who was a lifelong Spencer resident, farmer, and civic leader. The home was sold in the 1920s to Rev. James E. and Cordelia (Treat) Parker who lived in the home until 1969. The Parkers announced their intentions to donate the home during a meeting with the newly established historical society in 1960. The Parker Historical Society took possession of the home after Rev. Parker’s death and when Mrs. Parker moved to St. Luke’s Lutheran Nursing Home in 1969. Rev. Parker died in 1965 and Cordelia Parker died in 1969. Both are buried in Riverside Cemetery in Spencer.
The public is invited to Christmas at the Parker for come-and-go tours and refreshments. The museum will be open Friday, November 13 from 2-4 p.m.; Saturday, November 14 from 10 a.m. – 3 p.m.; and Sunday, November 15 from 2-4 p.m. Tickets are $10 each and may be purchased in advance from Quester members or at The Heritage Center, 7 Grand Ave., Spencer. Tickets will also be sold at the door. For more information, contact the Clay County Heritage Center at 712.262.3304.
