{"id":10418,"date":"2022-12-06T20:40:23","date_gmt":"2022-12-07T02:40:23","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/stateoftheozarks.net\/showcase\/?p=10418"},"modified":"2023-01-14T17:29:15","modified_gmt":"2023-01-14T23:29:15","slug":"scotties-christmas","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/stateoftheozarks.net\/showcase\/2022\/12\/06\/scotties-christmas\/","title":{"rendered":"Scottie’s Christmas"},"content":{"rendered":"

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n

Scottie\u2019s Christmas, circa 2022<\/strong><\/h1>\n

by Joshua Heston<\/strong><\/p>\n

[SPARTA, MO] \u2014 Scottie Snider, longtime antique collector, artist and decorator, stands in his 1880s\u2019 farmhouse, welcoming the civic-minded and the curious of Christian County into his holiday-ensconced residence.<\/p>\n

\u201cI have collected antiques since I have been married and my wife Pam and I loved the old primitives. I want pieces that are old, dirty and dark, not the shiny stuff,\u201d says Snider in between guests.<\/p>\n

Christmas open houses were a tradition for Scottie and Pam with the help of longtime friend Randy Woods. \u201cRandy lived with us for 17 years.\u201d<\/p>\n

This Christmas is bittersweet. Pam passed away in January 2020. Randy passed November 2021. \u201cI wasn’t going to decorate my house with someone dying in it,\u201d says Snider.[\/vc_column_text][vc_single_image image=”10499″ img_size=”full”][vc_column_text]With 218 Christmas trees, 275 Santas, 58 nativity sets, and an uncountable number of ornaments and unique pieces, the holiday home is a memorable albeit overwhelming experience.<\/p>\n

The holiday open house set-up began July 4 with the help of local Darren Gloyd. In November, 40 fresh cedar trees were cut from ditches. The trees now appear to sprout around the front walk. Hand-cut wooden stars and evergreen boughs frame the old porch.[\/vc_column_text][vc_single_image image=”10504″ img_size=”full”][vc_column_text]An elderly couple pass through the front door, dropping a few bills into the donation jar. This year\u2019s Christmas open house tour was organized by the Cosmopolitan Club of Ozark \u2014 a social club which raises money for local children in need \u2014 and the event included several properties. More than 300 attendees passed through Snider\u2019s crowded home over the course of two December weekends.[\/vc_column_text][vc_single_image image=”10437″ img_size=”full”][vc_column_text]The host\u2019s bedroom was opened to the public. One wall was decorated in old cabinet photos of men, taxidermy pieces, and an antique liquor cabinet; the bedroom is the only room with original unpainted bead board on wall and ceiling.[\/vc_column_text][vc_single_image image=”10426″ img_size=”full”][vc_column_text]Handmade Santas are everywhere, this piece having been created by Stone County artist Kay Cloud. Regarded as the \u201coriginal sawdust doll maker,\u201d Cloud\u2019s work is displayed in the Smithsonian. Here you will not find the jolly, sanitized Saint Nicholas of today but instead, the Old World Sinterklaas<\/em>, rough, primitive, hard-to-find pieces.[\/vc_column_text][vc_single_image image=”10424″ img_size=”full”][vc_column_text]Woods collected copper ware and Snider now collects copper cookie cutters in his memory. In the small galley kitchen redolent with the smell of spiced cider and meatballs, a copper-laden pine anchors a worn table of turn-of-the-century lumber, the table packed with winter-rescued spider plant, hulking gray-green general store scales, and a glass water urn shimmering with cranberries, sliced oranges, limes and lemons.[\/vc_column_text][vc_single_image image=”10443″ img_size=”full”][vc_column_text]The house is old, having been originally built about a mile-and-a-half north of town, likely before the infamous and historic Bald Knobber events of the county. \u201cBud Gann was grandmother\u2019s grandfather,\u201d explains Snider. \u201cThat was his shotgun. He was leader of the Shady Grove Bald Knobbers.\u201d[\/vc_column_text][vc_single_image image=”10422″ img_size=”full”][vc_column_text]At bedside hangs an old photograph of Gann. The frame is \u201dmade of the gallows used to hang the Bald Knobbers on the Ozark square.\u201d Gann\u2019s hawthorn walking stick hangs next to the gallows\u2019 wood.[\/vc_column_text][vc_single_image image=”10423″ img_size=”full”][vc_column_text]The framed art on the wall is a Snider original (of the nearby Ozark Mill). A 1940s\u2019 paper nativity graces the footboard, along with a hand-crocheted tree beneath a glass bell cloche.<\/p>\n

The bed\u2019s footboard is made from cemetery fence, the headboard a cemetery gate. The nativity rests upon a fainting couch from the Klepper Funeral Home in Ozark. \u201cI guess I could be called a little morbid,\u201d chuckles Snider softly.[\/vc_column_text][vc_single_image image=”10428″ img_size=”full”][vc_column_text]\u201cThe deer still has velvet on his antlers. I don\u2019t hunt, but I love the look of the deer, of men, of guns. It is what I want in here now.\u201d[\/vc_column_text][vc_single_image image=”10433″ img_size=”full”][vc_column_text]\u201cThe big tree is Randy\u2019s. The ornaments are mostly from Pigeon Forge and Gatlinburg.\u201d Feather ornaments complete the look while shelves of Blair pottery frame the room. The green-and-cream \u201cpear leaf\u201d pattern \u2014 sold by Neiman Marcus in the 1940s and 1950s \u2014 was handcrafted in Ozark, Missouri.[\/vc_column_text][vc_single_image image=”10435″ img_size=”full”][vc_column_text]\u201cWe bought Bob in Aurora [Missouri]. Every time we hit a bump, he would bob up and down on the drive home,\u201d recalls Snider, \u201dso we named him Bob.\u201d[\/vc_column_text][vc_single_image image=”10434″ img_size=”full”][vc_column_text]To the left of Canada goose Bob are \u201csnow babies\u201d collectibles. \u201cRandy and I found the signed pieces in a shop in Florida.\u201d That Halloween vacation would be Scottie and Randy\u2019s last trip together.[\/vc_column_text][vc_single_image image=”10432″ img_size=”full”][vc_column_text]The egg tree is Dutch; hand-made papier-m\u00e2ch\u00e9 from Holland. \u201cI don’t know how old [the eggs] are,\u201d admits Snider, \u201cbut I love the old Delft colors. I had them for years until I sold them in a yard sale.\u201d Befitting the small town, Snider would lament the decision sometime later to a friend who replied, \u201cOh, I bought those. You can have them back.\u201d[\/vc_column_text][vc_single_image image=”10430″ img_size=”full”][vc_column_text]In the den, 1920s\u2019 taxidermy ducks appear to fly over yet more trees, more pottery, more ornaments and two caskets (for decorative purposes only). Residents have reported paranormal activity throughout the house. \u201cI\u2019ve had stacks of books slam into the floor from the caskets,\u201d says Snider.<\/p>\n

A lady in old-time garb once glided past guests in the dining room and the shadow of a black dog wanders the home.<\/p>\n

\u201cI have a little black dog that looks like the ghost dog we were told about,\u201d furthers Snider. \u201cI went outside to let the dogs out and reached over to pet Audrey on the head. Then went back inside and found Audrey in her pen locked up. I guess I was petting the \u2018other\u2019 dog.\u201d[\/vc_column_text][vc_single_image image=”10436″ img_size=”full”][vc_column_text]\u201cIt is said when someone near you dies you will see pennies, feathers and cardinals. I had my first three [open house tours] and cleaned and swept everything. I was the only one in the house. I went upstairs the next morning and found a penny on the floor of all three rooms.\u201d<\/p>\n

Later, Snider found \u201ctwo long feathers in the middle of the dining room.\u201d Placed inside a glass ornament created for the purpose, the feathers serve as a quiet memorial on \u201cRandy\u2019s tree.\u201d[\/vc_column_text][vc_single_image image=”10427″ img_size=”full”][vc_column_text]Next to a silver tinsel tree and within the gaze of a stern rams\u2019 head barometer, four primitive Santas stare balefully next to a gingerbread man. \u201cThe fabric one is very old, over a hundred years.\u201d[\/vc_column_text][vc_single_image image=”10429″ img_size=”full”][vc_column_text]\u201cThe dishes are from Riverside Inn.\u201d The table settings are traditional, the massive oak table dominates the dining room-turned foyer. \u201cRiverside Inn was opened in 1923 by Howard Garrison two miles north of Ozark on the Finley River and torn down in 2010.\u201d[\/vc_column_text][vc_single_image image=”10421″ img_size=”full”][vc_column_text]A brown plastic nativity brings back memories of a 1950s\u2019 Christmas. Behind is a family photo inside an old clock. \u201cI added the dried rose from dad\u2019s funeral and a wasp nest. I like weird stuff.\u201d[\/vc_column_text][vc_single_image image=”10438″ img_size=”full”][vc_column_text]Narrow stairs lead to a vast array of 19th century antiques. \u201dI like the old original red,\u201d smiles Snider, referring to the painted staircase. In the stairwell hangs Riverside owner Howard Garrison\u2019s baby dress. Garrison was born in 1901 and died in 1974. \u201cI\u2019ve owned his baby dress twice.\u201d[\/vc_column_text][vc_single_image image=”10439″ img_size=”full”][vc_column_text]\u201cI love the Belsnickel look. This piece isn’t terribly old but it is neat. I love the old Santa look, things with weird fabric coats, papier-m\u00e2ch\u00e9 over plaster, old Christmas prints.\u201d[\/vc_column_text][vc_single_image image=”10425″ img_size=”full”][vc_column_text]\u201cRandy\u2019s great-great-grandmother was half-black and black history and art were very important to him.\u201d The tree in the original kitchen is trimmed in cotton stems and turn-of-the-century postcards. \u201cI painted a portrait of his great-great-grandmother and her little brother and hung the paintings on the wall,\u201d says Snider, gesturing into the room.[\/vc_column_text][vc_single_image image=”10440″ img_size=”full”][vc_column_text]\u201cHandmade with a beard of real sheep\u2019s wool, this primitive Santa is one I\u2019ve had for probably 30 years. Pam used to go to home interior parties and I\u2019d tell her, \u2018Don\u2019t buy anything. I want everything in my home to be unique.\u2019\u201d[\/vc_column_text][vc_single_image image=”10431″ img_size=”full”][vc_column_text]Hanging from a chandelier made of an overturned wire flower basket are dozens of 1960s\u2019 beaded eggs and balls. \u201cI\u2019ve collected those for years and made the chandelier myself.<\/p>\n

\u201cPam wasn’t fond of the holidays. Her dad was ran over and killed on Christmas Day when she was seven years old. I tried to make [the season] special for her.\u201d<\/p>\n

At turns bittersweet, overwhelming, haunting, heartfelt and touching, Scottie\u2019s Christmas, circa 2022<\/em> was an experience unlike any other.<\/p>\n

\u2014 photography by Joshua Heston 12\/09\/2022<\/strong>[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][\/vc_row]<\/p>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text] Scottie\u2019s Christmas, circa 2022 by Joshua Heston [SPARTA, MO] \u2014 Scottie Snider, longtime antique collector, artist and decorator, stands in his 1880s\u2019 farmhouse, welcoming the civic-minded and the curious of Christian County into his holiday-ensconced residence. \u201cI have collected antiques since I have been married and my wife Pam and I loved the old…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":10442,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[180],"tags":[1447,1733,1734,1755,1730,1746,1735,1750,851,1722,1723,1732,1726,1727,1748,1745,675,1737,1752,1743,1729,1739,1719,1742,99,1725,1741,1740,1738,1749,1751,1753,1720,1721,1724,1717,1736,1744,1731,1747,1718,1728,1754],"class_list":["post-10418","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-arcaneozarks","tag-antiques","tag-bald-knobber","tag-baldknobber","tag-belsnickel","tag-berryville-arkansas","tag-blair-pottery","tag-bud-gann","tag-casket","tag-christian-county","tag-christmas","tag-christmas-tree","tag-copper-cookie-cutters","tag-cosmopolitan-club","tag-december","tag-egg-tree","tag-feather-ornament","tag-finley-river","tag-gallows","tag-ghost-dog","tag-guns","tag-handmade-santa","tag-hawthorn","tag-holiday","tag-men","tag-missouri","tag-nativity-set","tag-ozark-funeral-home","tag-ozark-mill","tag-ozarks-square","tag-papier-mache","tag-paranormal-activity","tag-pennies","tag-primitive-antiques","tag-randy-woods","tag-santa","tag-scottie-snider","tag-shady-grove","tag-shotgun","tag-sinterklaas","tag-snow-babies","tag-sparta-missouri","tag-taxidermy","tag-wasp-nest","category-180","description-off"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/stateoftheozarks.net\/showcase\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10418","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/stateoftheozarks.net\/showcase\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/stateoftheozarks.net\/showcase\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stateoftheozarks.net\/showcase\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stateoftheozarks.net\/showcase\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=10418"}],"version-history":[{"count":53,"href":"https:\/\/stateoftheozarks.net\/showcase\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10418\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":10516,"href":"https:\/\/stateoftheozarks.net\/showcase\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10418\/revisions\/10516"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stateoftheozarks.net\/showcase\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/10442"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/stateoftheozarks.net\/showcase\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=10418"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stateoftheozarks.net\/showcase\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=10418"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stateoftheozarks.net\/showcase\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=10418"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}