Clay County Heritage

06/04/2026

LETTERS FROM THE HEIKENS FAMILY . . . I've been enjoying the Heikens Family Heritage book, published in 1978 and filled with many marvelous first-person recollections of history about the family settling in Clay County and the Fostoria area in particular. They emigrated from Germany. The book is available to read at the Clay County Heritage Center's Rotary Resource Room if you'd like to read for yourself.

One tidbit I read last night caused me to good chortle. I think Isaac and I could have been friends. It read: "In 1914 the family all made the trip to Ackley to have a group picture taken to send to the relatives in Germany who wanted to see what they looked like. As soon as the picture was taken, Isaac quipped, 'Now we can all die.' When the picture was finished it was too large to mail in one piece and had to be cut up."

06/02/2026

PARKER MUSEUM GARDEN PARTY & SUMMER OPEN HOUSE SUNDAY, JUNE 14

The Parker Museum, located at 300 E. Third Street in Spencer, will be the site of a garden party and summer open house on Sunday, June 14 from 1-3 p.m.

The public is invited to visit the 1916 home which was donated in 1960s by Rev. James and Cordelia Parker. Their gift to the community also helped to launch the creation of the Parker Historical Society, which is known today as the Clay County Heritage Center of Spencer.

The home recently underwent spring cleaning and restaging with the help of a local Questers Club and Spencer High School’s No Boundaries students. All is prepared for a new season of museum visitors who are invited to meander through the home and peak into the Parker’s past and Spencer’s rich history. The basement, which flooded in June 2024, has been restaged and cleaned for viewing as well. Docents will be on hand for the free tours on Sunday.

This year, the museum will also have a 1919 Cadillac parked in the driveway of the Parker for viewing and historic reflection. The vintage vehicle has a rich Clay County history and is owned by Ron and Maureen Christensen of rural Spencer. Christensen is the great grandson of the original owner of the vehicle Julius Christensen of Royal.

Vintage and modern lawn games will be set about the museum’s green space for all ages to enjoy. Desserts and beverages will be served. The event will also serve as the museum’s summer grand reopening, rain or shine. Visitors are invited to tour the Parker Museum on Sundays beginning June 14 - August 16, 2026, from 2-4 p.m. with volunteer docents available each week.

For more information about the Parker June 14 Garden Party and Open House or about Sunday summer tours or to volunteer at the Parker Museum, contact the Clay County Heritage Center at 712.262.3304.

05/29/2026

AWESOME CAPTURES FROM THE 1950s. We recently found a stash of negatives from Spencer's Grace United Methodist Church dedication of their new education wing in 1958 or 1959. Pastor Michael Slininger recently paid to have these images reproduced for the museum and church!

NOTICE: The original church building remained in place and First Christian Church was located across West Fourth Street where the current day Farmers Trust and Savings Bank now sits.

Do you recognize any faces in these shots? Please share in the comments.

05/29/2026

05/28/2026

SANDERSON JOINS HERITAGE STAFF. . .The Clay County Heritage Center of Spencer is pleased to welcome Shayla Sanderson of Dickens to our staff. She will be serving as assistant to the museum director and performing a variety of duties, including the acquisition and accessioning of historic artifacts.

Sanderson, a 2026 Iowa Lakes Community College graduate, earned her associated degree in general education and is currently enrolled at Arizona State University online where she is working toward her bachelor’s degree in anthropology. She is a 2025 graduate of Spencer High School.

She enjoys reading, research, and has an interest in history. While in high school, Sanderson participated in the Spencer High School No Boundaries program, researching and interpreting the ‘History of Spencer Community Schools’ project.

“We are pleased Shayla has joined our staff at the Heritage Center. Her passion for researching history and work ethic will prove a marvelous fit for our organization,” said Susan Christensen, CCHC interim executive director. “She’s already shown great proficiency in learning the museum’s software program and is neck-deep in the process of accessioning artifacts. We’re eager to plug her into various additional roles at the museum, including exhibits and community programming.”

Sanderson also works part time at Starbucks in Spencer’s Hy-Vee. Her special interests include dance, reading, nature, and rugby.

With the addition of Sanderson as museum staff, the Heritage Center resumes regular business hours and is open to the public, Tuesdays - Fridays from 12-4 p.m. and Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Parker House tours are available by appointment. Contact the Clay County Heritage Center for more information at 712.262.3304.

05/28/2026

CALLING ALL GILLETT GROVERS. . . We're in search of additional pictures from the early days of your community for the Clay County Heritage Museum's 175th Anniversary Exhibition, which will be launched this summer.

Each town in Clay County will be represented in the exhibit, and we'd like to have a nice collection of images and artifacts about those EARLY days since the town's inception up through the early 1920s. We are lacking images from the Gillett Grove area.

If you have any images we could scan and return to you for our exhibit from your ancestor's past, we'd be forever grateful. Any artifacts (family items, business memorabilia, signs, household, farm, or ephemeral documents) about Gillett Grove and her people are also VERY welcomed to be used in the exhibit through May 2027.

Contact Susan at 712.260.1595 at the Clay County Heritage Center.

Photo Credit: Wesley Peters

05/27/2026

SUNDAY, MAY 31 is the FINAL DAY TO BID on the Heritage Center's June quilt, which is filled with flowers and butterflies. It is currently on display in Northwest Bank's lobby in Spencer. Visit https://www.bigirongives.com/ to place your final bid on this charming spring lap quilt.

NEXT UP . . . A RED, WHITE, & BLUE quilt just in time for the fourth of July, currently on display in the Dvergsten Gallery at the Heritage Center, located at 7 Grand Avenue in Spencer. Place your bids early ONLINE. All proceeds raised to benefit the Clay County Heritage Center.

05/27/2026

RESEARCHER EXTRAORDINAIRE! This sweet lady's become a frequent visitor of the Clay County Heritage Center's Rotary Media Room! Ms. Vicky Treimer, local author and historian, is working on another book about Clay County.

She's generously shared some of her research work with us as we research and write the 175th Anniversary Exhibit. She's published a book on Moneta, Iowa, and currently has a book at the press about Gillett Grove, Iowa. * I think Gillett Grove history is my FAVORITE NEW LEARN this year from Clay County's history when recognizing the relevance of the Gillett Brothers' interactions with Inkpaduta and his band of renegades only days before the Spirit Lake Massacre. It's a MUST LEARN . . . and will be explained during our Clay County 175th Anniversary Exhibit later this summer. :)

Treimer has been enjoying access to our historic artifacts, which aid in her next research project. . . FOSTORIA, Iowa! She's learned some interesting details about that community and is considering publishing yet another book. Stay tuned!

Remember the Clay County Heritage Center's Media Room, sponsored by Spencer's Rotary Club, if you're interested in self-researching a topic about a community in Clay County. The Heritage Center serves as the official county museum. We are pleased to accommodate researchers when possible.