Nutcracker Museum

1st Quarter Newsletter 2022

for the Leavenworth Nutcracker Museum

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THEN AND NOW… Although the changes in the museum have not been as gigantic as those of our town, what started as a little display of nutcrackers on the second floor of a commercial building has blossomed into a world class museum of 4500 square feet in this Bavarian village of Washington State. My husband and I so enjoyed our collection of nutcrackers that we wanted to share them with others so in 1995 we opened the doors of the Leavenworth Nutcracker Museum.



We started our collection with the popular wooden toy soldier nutcrackers, and later discovered nutcrackers intricately carved of wood and others forged in metals. The acquisition of the metal collection of Rik Gijsen of the Netherlands, most of the well known Gillissen collection of Germany and 16th and 17th century antiques brought the museum to a whole new level of excellence. Today the museum shows many antique nutcrackers that would fit into any one of the major museums in the world.



When the museum received non-profit status in 2006, other nutcracker collections were donated to the museum, many from seniors who were moving into smaller homes, and others from families who had lost a loved one that wanted his nutcrackers preserved for others to enjoy. We are very appreciative of these additions and today visitors are enjoying over 7,000 specimens, many of which had been collected by Francis Simeone of Massachusetts.



The museum enjoys worldwide publicity and visitors have come from every state in the Union, every province in Canada and over 100 other countries. Nutcrackers on display have originated in over 40 countries. One family from Costa Rica did not see a nutcracker from their country, so made one themselves for the museum so their country too would be represented.



A visit to the museum is an educational experience. Cases show how nuts have been cracked over the centuries with nutting stones of the Archaic period to nut openers of the present day, with each nut being cracked by a percussion, lever or screw mechanism. We know how the children are drawn to the wooden toy soldiers they see at Christmas time, and with our nutcracker hunts we instill their interest in other forms by adding such things as a carved green frog, a metal dog or an ivory gnome.



The museum has published seven books, ranging from children’s books to the award winning “The Art & Character of Nutcrackers”, a large coffee table book featuring nearly 1,000 collectible nut opening devices. Another book “The Nutcracker Lady’s Introduction to Nutcrackers” was written in cooperation with Christian Ulbricht GmbH of Germany who produced an exclusive design for the book. Spencer Piestrup of Leavenworth added delightful graphics for the children’s books, a page shown here.



Since I, as “The Nutcracker Lady” have just turned 97, many have questioned what will happen in the future, but there is no need for worry as the Nutcracker Museum is secure under the care of a diverse and qualified board of directors. Most importantly, after years of searching, the next “Nutcracker Lady” has been found, and is already immersed into the history of nutcrackers. In the next newsletter she will be introduced and together she and I will describe her extensive training program in preparation for this difficult, time consuming, but most rewarding roll.

Arlene Wagner, The Nutcracker Lady Leavenworth Nutcracker Museum Email: curator@nutcrackermuseum.com