Beaver Island ArchiveA primary-source archive & encyclopedia45°40′N 85°33′W · Lake Michigan
Search

Person

Sheldon R. Parker

Also Sheldon Parker · Sheldon R. Parker

Draft — sources verified, prose evolving

TypePerson
Born1906-08-29
Died1995-03-18
WithinBeaver Island
ErasModern era
On this page
Person
Born
1906-08-29
Died
1995-03-18
Work
Toolmaker and foreman · President, Beaver Island Game Club (succeeded Alvin LaFreniere) · Game News columnist, Beaver Beacon · Trustee, Beaver Island Historical Society board (expanded to seven members)
Member of
Beaver Island Game Club · Beaver Island Historical Society · Beaver Island Christian Church
Eras
Modern era
Concepts
conservationenvironmentcommunityheritagereligion
Within
Beaver Island

Summary

Sheldon R. Parker (29 August 1906 – 18 March 1995) was a retired Oldsmobile toolmaker and foreman who, after 1969, spent 25 years living year-round on Beaver Island with his wife, Beatrice “Bea” (Scripter) Parker. On the island he led the Beaver Island Game Club as president from October 1972, wrote its Game News column for the Beaver Beacon through at least the mid-1970s, served on the Beaver Island Historical Society’s expanded board of trustees from 1977, and was active in the Beaver Island Christian Church. He and his wife left the island year-round in 1994; he died the following March at his other home in St. Johns, Michigan.

History

Retirement to Beaver Island

Parker was born August 29, 1906, in Lansing, Michigan, and on August 31, 1929, married Beatrice A. Scripter; the couple raised their family north of St. Johns.1 He worked as a toolmaker and foreman at Oldsmobile until his 1969 retirement, after which he and Bea lived on Beaver Island year-round until 1994.1 Beacon notices place the couple on the island from at least 1970: that February, “Sheldon Parker and George Miller poked some holes in the ice” on Fox Lake, and a five-person snowmobile party — Archie LaFreniere, Russ Green, Bill Wagner, Parker, and the writer — crossed from Indian Point to Whiskey and Squaw Islands on February 16.2 By August 1971, Parker was advertising off-season winter property inspections “by automobile, snowmobile and on foot,” an advertisement that recurred in Beacon issues into 1973.3

Game Club president and Game News columnist

In October 1972, the Beaver Island Game Club report noted that “Sheldon Parker has taken over the reigns as President, since Alvin LaFreniere has moved to Chicago,” and summarized the club’s clear-cutting, salt-block, and apple-tree-pruning work.4 The Beacon later reprinted the same report in an October 2002 “Thirty Years Ago” retrospective.5 By February 1974 the paper’s Game News column was bylined directly to “Game Club President Sheldon Parker,”6 and further Game News reports and notices under his name ran at least through April 1976, covering deer, coyote, and rabbit populations, salt-block placement on Garden and Hog Islands, and a DNR-approved winter perch survey.78 In November 1974, and again in early 1975, the Beacon carried a classified notice offering his services as a rabbit-hunting guide: “Have dogs — will guide. No shooting — no pay.”9

Beacon nature writing

Beyond Game News and civic notices, Parker contributed occasional nature essays that the Beacon returned to years later. “A-Loomin’ Thru the Rain,” first printed in August 1974, was reprinted in July 1992; “The Return,” an essay following a hunter’s year of visits to an old huckleberry-marsh wagon road, first ran in April 1973 and was reprinted in October 1994 with a 1980 photo captioned “Successful Morel Hunt for Bea and Shel Parker. Shel was 75 then… They’ve now ‘retired’ to St. Johns, MI, where they get morels in a Mason jar” – consistent with his 1906 birth year and confirming the couple’s eventual move off the island.1011

Historical Society and church

At the Historical Society’s November 9, 1977, annual meeting, members expanded the board of trustees to seven and elected Parker alongside Phyllis Townsend, Mary Minor, Shirley Gladish, Marguerite Runberg, Bill Welke, and Ed Ladd from a slate of nine candidates; a week later the board chose its officers — Townsend as president, Ladd vice-president, Minor treasurer, and Gladish secretary — with Parker remaining a trustee rather than an officer.12 Parker also wrote for the Beacon beyond the Game Club beat, including a first-person account of the Christian Church’s annual Thanksgiving potluck, which he described as having begun informally “a few years ago.”13 A December 1985 reader letter recalled that “Bea and Sheldon Parker invited us to the Beaver Island Non-Denominational Christian Church one lucky day years ago,” describing the congregation’s character; the letter shows the couple’s continued island church involvement into the 1980s.14

Death

Sheldon Parker died March 18, 1995, at his home in St. Johns, Michigan, at 88; a brief April 1995 Beacon notice reported his death alongside Harriet Rafferty’s under the heading “A Double Loss…,” promising fuller tributes to follow.15 The May 1995 obituary adds that he was survived by his wife; a daughter, Lois (Harold) Bracey of Ovid; a son, Sheldon (Janice) Parker of St. Johns; 14 grandchildren and 30 great-grandchildren; and a sister, and that he had been predeceased by a son, DeVere, in 1986, and two sisters and a brother. He attended Greenbush United Methodist Church as well as the Beaver Island Christian Church; memorial services were held March 24 at Greenbush United Methodist Church, and he was interred at Eureka Cemetery.1

Significance

Parker’s byline carried the Beaver Beacon’s Game Club reporting through much of the 1970s, and he led the Game Club itself for at least two years after 1972. His election to the Historical Society’s first seven-member board of trustees in 1977 places him, alongside Mary Minor and Shirley Gladish, among the islanders who reorganized that Society’s governance as its museum and publishing activity expanded in the late 1970s.

Open questions

  • How long Parker’s Game Club presidency continued past 1974 is not established from the sources held here.
  • His wife’s name appears as “Bea” in most Beacon references and once, in a 1992 item, as “Bev”; this article follows “Bea,” matching the 1995 obituary’s “Beatrice,” and does not resolve the single “Bev” instance.
  • No source held here documents when Parker and his wife first began visiting or living part-time on Beaver Island before the earliest held Beacon mention (February 1970).
  • Whether Parker held any office (rather than trustee membership) in the Beaver Island Historical Society after 1977 is not established.

See also

Sources

See the sources: block above for full citation and provenance detail.

Footnotes

  1. “Sheldon Parker,” Beaver Beacon, May 1995, /data1/beaver-island-archive/ocr/beaver_beacon/markdown/1995-05_Beaver-Beacon.md. ↩ ↩2 ↩3

  2. Beaver Beacon, February 1970, /data1/beaver-island-archive/ocr/beaver_beacon/markdown/1970-02_Beaver-Beacon.md. ↩

  3. Beaver Beacon, August 1971, classified advertising, /data1/beaver-island-archive/ocr/beaver_beacon/markdown/1971-08_Beaver-Beacon.md. ↩

  4. Beaver Beacon, October 1972, /data1/beaver-island-archive/ocr/beaver_beacon/markdown/1972-10_Beaver-Beacon.md. ↩

  5. Beaver Beacon, October 2002, “Thirty Years Ago,” /data1/beaver-island-archive/ocr/beaver_beacon/markdown/2002-10_Beaver-Beacon.md. ↩

  6. Beaver Beacon, February 1974, “Game News,” /data1/beaver-island-archive/ocr/beaver_beacon/markdown/1974-02_Beaver-Beacon.md. ↩

  7. Beaver Beacon, March 1974, “Game News,” /data1/beaver-island-archive/ocr/beaver_beacon/markdown/1974-03_Beaver-Beacon.md. ↩

  8. Beaver Beacon, April 1976, “Game Club News,” /data1/beaver-island-archive/ocr/beaver_beacon/markdown/1976-04_Beaver-Beacon.md. ↩

  9. Beaver Beacon, November 1974, classified advertising, “Rabbit Hunters,” /data1/beaver-island-archive/ocr/beaver_beacon/markdown/1974-11_Beaver-Beacon.md. ↩

  10. “The Return,” by Sheldon Parker, Beaver Beacon, October 1994 (reprinted from April 1973), /data1/beaver-island-archive/ocr/beaver_beacon/markdown/1994-10_Beaver-Beacon.md. ↩

  11. “A-Loomin’ Thru the Rain,” by Sheldon Parker, Beaver Beacon, July 1992 (reprinted from August 1974), /data1/beaver-island-archive/ocr/beaver_beacon/markdown/1992-07_Beaver-Beacon.md. ↩

  12. Beaver Beacon, October 1977, “Beaver Island Historical Society News,” /data1/beaver-island-archive/ocr/beaver_beacon/markdown/1977-10_Beaver-Beacon.md. ↩

  13. Beaver Beacon, November 1971, “Thanksgiving Dinner by Sheldon Parker,” /data1/beaver-island-archive/ocr/beaver_beacon/markdown/1971-11_Beaver-Beacon.md. ↩

  14. Beaver Beacon, December 1985, reader letter, /data1/beaver-island-archive/ocr/beaver_beacon/markdown/1985-12_Beaver-Beacon.md. ↩

  15. Beaver Beacon, April 1995, “A Double Loss…,” /data1/beaver-island-archive/ocr/beaver_beacon/markdown/1995-04_Beaver-Beacon.md. ↩

The dated record

8 dated events · 1906–1995These years on the timeline →

Sources

  1. Signs the Game News report and describes winter wildlife observations and browse-cutting work; it supplies no civil biography or formal Game Club office record.
    data1 · beaver-island-archive · beaver_beacon · 1974-02_Beaver-Beacon
  2. The held eleven-page issue scan is paired with the OCR source and confirms the published notice or report; it does not expand the source-specific identity, event, or outcome claims.
    data1 · beaver-island-archive · scans · beaver_beacon · issues · 1974-02_Beaver-Beacon
  3. Names Parker with Bill Wagner in the placement of four salt blocks on Garden Island and one on Hog Island; it supplies no civil biography or formal office record.
    data1 · beaver-island-archive · beaver_beacon · 1974-03_Beaver-Beacon
  4. The held nine-page issue scan is paired with the OCR source and confirms the published notice or report; it does not expand the source-specific identity, event, or outcome claims.
    data1 · beaver-island-archive · scans · beaver_beacon · issues · 1974-03_Beaver-Beacon
  5. The August Game News column reports July smallmouth bass fishing and a pheasant planting by Don Welke; the issue does not print a byline, so Parker’s continuing authorship remains a source-qualified continuity.
    data1 · beaver-island-archive · beaver_beacon · 1974-08_Beaver-Beacon
  6. The held ten-page issue scan is paired with the OCR source and confirms the published notice or report; it does not expand the source-specific identity, event, or outcome claims.
    data1 · beaver-island-archive · scans · beaver_beacon · issues · 1974-08_Beaver-Beacon
  7. The November Game News column is not bylined, so it is not assigned to Parker; a separate classified advertisement names Sheldon Parker as offering rabbit-hunting guidance for hunters with dogs. The advertisement does not establish a completed hunt or a formal guide business.
    data1 · beaver-island-archive · beaver_beacon · 1974-11_Beaver-Beacon
  8. The held eight-page issue scan is paired with the OCR source and confirms the published notice or report; it does not expand the source-specific identity, event, or outcome claims.
    data1 · beaver-island-archive · scans · beaver_beacon · issues · 1974-11_Beaver-Beacon
  9. Bylines Parker’s January 8 report on winter snow and ice, hunting, deer, rabbits, and planned Game Club salt-block placement. It supplies no civil biography or formal office record. The holding institution's portal restricts automated access; the archive holds a copy of this issue and can provide it on request.
    data1 · beaver-island-archive · beaver_beacon · 1976-01_Beaver-Beacon
  10. The held issue confirms the byline and report.
    data1 · beaver-island-archive · scans · beaver_beacon · issues · 1976-01_Beaver-Beacon
  11. Bylines Parker’s report covering the DNR turkey release and spring wildlife guidance. It does not establish a formal Game Club office or later flock outcome. The holding institution's portal restricts automated access; the archive holds a copy of this issue and can provide it on request.
    data1 · beaver-island-archive · beaver_beacon · 1976-03_Beaver-Beacon
  12. The held issue confirms the Game News report.
    data1 · beaver-island-archive · scans · beaver_beacon · issues · 1976-03_Beaver-Beacon
  13. Bylines Parker’s spring report on trapping, deer, grouse, coyotes, apple trees, and fishing. It does not establish a formal office or complete wildlife record. The holding institution's portal restricts automated access; the archive holds a copy of this issue and can provide it on request.
    data1 · beaver-island-archive · beaver_beacon · 1976-04_Beaver-Beacon
  14. The held issue confirms the byline and report.
    data1 · beaver-island-archive · scans · beaver_beacon · issues · 1976-04_Beaver-Beacon
  15. The held eleven-page issue scan is paired with the OCR source and confirms the published notice or report; it does not expand the source-specific identity, event, or outcome claims.
    data1 · beaver-island-archive · scans · beaver_beacon · issues · 1974-02_Beaver-Beacon
  16. The held nine-page issue scan is paired with the OCR source and confirms the published notice or report; it does not expand the source-specific identity, event, or outcome claims.
    data1 · beaver-island-archive · scans · beaver_beacon · issues · 1974-03_Beaver-Beacon
  17. Reports that "Sheldon Parker has taken over the reigns as President, since Alvin LaFreniere has moved to Chicago," and summarizes the Game Club's clear-cutting, salt-block, apple-tree pruning, and seeding work for the past year. It does not give a formal election date or bylaws record.
    data1 · beaver-island-archive · beaver_beacon · 1972-10_Beaver-Beacon
  18. Names Sheldon Parker, with George Miller, ice fishing on Fox Lake, and separately names him among a five-person snowmobile party that crossed the ice from Indian Point to Whiskey and Squaw Islands on February 16; also reprints a poem, "The following Beaver Tale," composed by Parker for the Beacon. These are recreational and literary notices, not a civil or office record.
    data1 · beaver-island-archive · beaver_beacon · 1970-02_Beaver-Beacon
  19. A first-person Beacon piece by Parker describes the Beaver Island Christian Church's annual Thanksgiving potluck, which he says began as an informal gathering "a few years ago." It establishes his authorship and church attendance, not a formal church office.
    data1 · beaver-island-archive · beaver_beacon · 1971-11_Beaver-Beacon
  20. Advertises off-season winter property inspections "by automobile, snowmobile and on foot," contact Sheldon Parker, St. James, Michigan; the same or a near-identical ad recurs in several 1971-73 issues. It does not establish a registered business or its duration.
    data1 · beaver-island-archive · beaver_beacon · 1971-08_Beaver-Beacon
  21. Reports that at the Society's November 9 annual meeting, members voted to expand the Board of Trustees to seven and elected Phyllis Townsend, Mary Minor, Sheldon Parker, Shirley Gladish, Marguerite Runberg, Bill Welke, and Ed Ladd from a slate of nine candidates; a week later the board elected officers (Townsend president, Ladd vice-president, Minor treasurer, Gladish secretary), with Parker not among them. It does not give a term length. The holding institution's portal restricts automated access; the archive holds a copy of this issue and can provide it on request.
    data1 · beaver-island-archive · beaver_beacon · 1977-10_Beaver-Beacon
  22. A letter recalls that "Bea and Sheldon Parker invited us to the Beaver Island Non-Denominational Christian Church one lucky day years ago," describing the congregation's character. It corroborates Parker's wife's nickname "Bea" and the couple's continued church involvement into the 1980s; it is a personal recollection, not a membership or office record. The holding institution's portal restricts automated access; the archive holds a copy of this issue and can provide it on request.
    data1 · beaver-island-archive · beaver_beacon · 1985-12_Beaver-Beacon
  23. A brief notice reports Sheldon Parker's death, giving "d. 3/18/1995 (b. 8/29/1906)," alongside Harriet Rafferty's, and promises fuller tributes in the May issue. The holding institution's portal restricts automated access; the archive holds a copy of this issue and can provide it on request.
    data1 · beaver-island-archive · beaver_beacon · 1995-04_Beaver-Beacon
  24. Full obituary: Sheldon R. Parker, 88, of St. Johns, Michigan, died Saturday, March 18, 1995, at his home; born August 29, 1906, in Lansing; married Beatrice A. Scripter on August 31, 1929, and raised his family north of St. Johns; retired from Oldsmobile, where he worked as a toolmaker and foreman, in 1969, after which he and Bea lived year-round on Beaver Island until 1994; enjoyed hunting, fishing, and flying his own airplanes; attended Greenbush United Methodist Church and the Beaver Island Christian Church; survived by his wife; daughter Lois (Harold) Bracey of Ovid; son Sheldon (Janice) Parker of St. Johns; 14 grandchildren and 30 great-grandchildren; and a sister; predeceased by a son, DeVere, in 1986, and two sisters and a brother. Memorial services were held March 24 at Greenbush United Methodist Church, with Rev. Joe Spackman and Philip R. Gregg officiating; interment was at Eureka Cemetery. The holding institution's portal restricts automated access; the archive holds a copy of this issue and can provide it on request.
    data1 · beaver-island-archive · beaver_beacon · 1995-05_Beaver-Beacon
  25. Beaver Beacon, October 2002, "Thirty Years Ago" retrospective column.
    Retrospectively restates the October 1972 Game Club report, confirming "the Club elected Sheldon Parker president to replace Alvin LaFreniere, who moved to Chicago." It is the same 1972 event as reported by the paper thirty years earlier, not independent corroboration from a different source. No public copy of this file is known; the archive holds one and can provide it on request.
    data1 · beaver-island-archive · beaver_beacon · 2002-10_Beaver-Beacon
  26. Reprints a Parker nature essay about a hunter revisiting an old huckleberry-marsh wagon road through a year's seasons. A photo caption reads "1980 -- Successful Morel Hunt for Bea and Shel Parker. Shel was 75 then... They've now 'retired' to St. Johns, MI," consistent with the 1906 birth year and the obituary's account of the couple's move off the island. It does not establish a publication history beyond this single reprint. The holding institution's portal restricts automated access; the archive holds a copy of this issue and can provide it on request.
    data1 · beaver-island-archive · beaver_beacon · 1994-10_Beaver-Beacon
  27. A second Parker piece reprinted eighteen years after its original publication, corroborating a recurring practice of reprinting his island nature writing in the Beacon. The holding institution's portal restricts automated access; the archive holds a copy of this issue and can provide it on request.
    data1 · beaver-island-archive · beaver_beacon · 1992-07_Beaver-Beacon

Added 1 August 2026 · revised 5 August 2026. Recent changes

Cite this article

Beaver Island Archive, “Sheldon R. Parker”, https://beaverislandarchive.org/people/sheldon-parker/, accessed [date], citing Beaver Beacon, February 1974, “Game News.” (and 24 further sources listed on the page).

Last revised 2026-08-05. Fill in [date] with the date you read it — this page is static and cannot know that.

BibTeXRIS