Parker Report

P a r k e r


        The two documents which have contributed most to our knowledge about our earliest known ancestors are the list which Jane Parker Bull (1810-1887) made of the names and dates of birth of herself and her brothers; and the memoir of Chrisman Harrison Parker (1828-1914), in which he told about his grandfather and great-grandfather, among others. Chrisman was a nephew of our ancestor Sampson, which means that his grandfather and great-grandfather are our ancestors. I am indebted to Sherry Jordan and Todd Haley for sharing transcriptions of these important documents with me.

        DNA testing of a descendant of Sampson Parker and a descendant of James, the father of Chrisman Harrison, has confirmed the relationships of these people. DNA testing has also corroborated the family tradition that the James W. Parker who married Sampson Parker's daughter Elizabeth was her second cousin. The Y-DNA haplogroup that our Parkers belong to indicates that our ancestors in that line most likely came to Britain as part of the Viking invasions.

        More recent DNA testing shows that we are also related to a James A. Parker born in North Carolina, probably Dobbs County, around 1785, who settled in Screven County, Georgia in 1793, and died there in 1843. Several of his descendants are named Hardy Parker, and since there were a number of Hardy Parkers in North Carolina, we are looking in these families to see if we can ascertain who this James's father was.

        Recent DNA testing shows that we are also related to Edward Parker, who was born in 1754 in the part of Beauford County, North Carolina, which later became Pitt County. In 1780 he lived at Boone Station in Kentucky, and enlisted at Booneborough on March 6, 1780, in George Rogers Clark's Illinois Militia, in which he served for 3 years. After his service, Edward eventually settled not far from Boonesborough in the Owingsville area whch became part of Mongomery County, and later part of Bath County, where he died in 1834. Since people did not just drop in at Boonesborough, but could only get there by a long and arduous journey, we have been reading a lot about Daniel Boone, and we are thinking that Edward Parker probably joined one of the parties which Boone brought back to Boonesborough or Boone Station after one of Boone's trips back to North Carolina, and that Edward probably lived near Boone in North Carolina. Boone's last residence in North Carolina was about 8 miles north of Wilkesborough, but earlier on, he lived in what is now Davie County, NC. Edward was quite a buffalo hunter at a time when the Indians were such a problem that many of the men were killed when they left the forts to hunt. The records show that he supplied a lot of buffalo meat for his garrisons.

        DNA testing has given us interesting new avenues for research. Whether or not we ever find the exact connections among our ancestor, John, and the James W. Parker, James A. Parker, and Edward Parker, whose descendants have participated in the Parker DNA Project, it has a great pleasure to learn more about what was going on in North Carolina during the 1700's. Things were certainly lively there then, at least until after the Revolution.

First Generation


1. John Parker. John married Jane. According to Chrisman Parker's memoir, John and his wife raised their children in North Carolina, where their family farm was raided by the Tories while John was away fighting for his country's freedom, and where John lived out his days. Many people believe that our John who later moved to Tennessee and then Kentucky was the John Parker who married Elizabeth Carrell in Wilkes County, North Carolina, on January 9, 1793 and was bondsman for the marriage of William Parker and Candace Austin there on October 28, 1801; that his father was the John Parker who died leaving a will in Wilkes County in 1791, naming his wife Mary, step-daughter Maryann Coons, and his children John, William, James, and Diana. That may be true, but since there are so many Johns and Elizabeths, it's difficult to be sure that you've got the right people. Since William was kind enough to marry a young woman whose name wasn't so common, Candace Austin, I tracked down a descendant of theirs who had a good paper trail, and who kindly agreed to DNA testing. Unfortunately, he turned out not to be related to us, so now we have to wonder whether the Wilkes County Parkers are not ours or whether there was a "non-paternal event" in William's line. Perhaps further research will clear up this issue.
       
  We know the names of the parents of our John who was born in 1772, because his death record in 1857 in Whitley County, Kentucky, stated that his parents names were John and Jane Parker.
       
  2. i. John (1772-1857)
       

Second Generation


2. John Parker. Born in 1772 in South Carolina or North Carolina. (The 1850 census indicates South Carolina, but the other earliest known ancestors of those in the DNA Project were born in North Carolina, and census records are rife with errors, so it would be nice to have some other documentary evidence that he was born in South Carolina.) At least we know that our John married Elizabeth, that some of their children were born in North Carolina, and that sometime between the time their son James was born in December of 1806 in North Carolina and the time their daughter Jane was born in August of 1810, they moved to Tennessee.
       
  I have wondered whether the Parkers in Cumberland County, Kentucky, in the 1810 census (Sampson, William, and John, all born from 1766 to 1784; and William, born before 1766) are our Parkers. The 1810 and 1820 censuses in Tennessee are not extant, so there is considerable uncertainty about this period.

According to the memoir of his grandson Chrisman Harrison Parker, John fought in the War of 1812, and was at the Battle of New Orleans when the British General Packenham was killed. By 1830, John and Elizabeth and some of their children were in Claiborne County, Tennessee, which borders Kentucky. Shortly thereafter, John and his wife moved to Whitley County, Kentucky. For a time they lived near their daughter Jane in nearby Knox County, Kentucky, but John died in Whitley County on 1 Jan 1857 at the age of 85.3 He is buried there in the John Parker Cemetery on a hill near Beck's Creek.
       
  There may have been more children than Jane and the brothers she listed, but the ones on the list are:
       
    i. Luke. Born December 17, 1793 in North Carolina; died after 1850.
       
    ii. John. Born June 5, 1801 in North Carolina.
       
  3. iii. Sampson (1804-1886).
       
    iv. James Pryor. Born December 20, 1806 in North Carolina; died about 1893.
       
    v. Jane. Born August 10, 1810 in Tennessee; died Mar 10, 1887.
       
    vi. William. Born Aug 30, 1813.
       

Third Generation


3. Sampson Parker. He was born 9 Feb 1804 in North Carolina. Before 1824, he married Sarah Elizabeth Davis, daughter of William Davis & Sarah Rapier, in Whitley County, Kentucky. Sally was born on 8 Sep 1801, and died in Whitley County, Kentucky on 2 Jun 1868; she was 66.3 Sampson died in Whitley County, Kentucky on 2 Feb 1886; he was 81. Sampson and Sarah Elizabeth are both buried in John Parker Cemetery, Whitley County, Kentucky.
       
  They had the following children:
       
    i. Neworleana Jane (Twin). Born on 8 Apr 1824 in Claiborne County, Tennessee. Jane died in Pulaski County, Kentucky on 11 Dec 1901; she was 77. Buried in Piney Woods Cemetery, Pulaski County, Kentucky. On 5 Aug 1841, when Jane was 17, she married Jefferson Freeman, son of Thomas Freeman & Mary Elizabeth Ball, in Whitley County, Kentucky.4 Born on 27 Jul 1816 in Buncombe County, North Carolina, Jefferson died in Pulaski County, Kentucky on 30 Jan 1893; he was 76.
       
  4. ii. William Henderson (Twin) (1824-1898)
       
    iii. John M. Born about 1826 in Whitley County, Kentucky,5 John M. died there in 1851; he was 25. On 10 May 1845, when John M. was 19, he married Jane Shelly, daughter of Nathan Shelly & Mary ("Polly") Meadors, in Whitley County, Kentucky.4,6 Born on 18 Mar 1825 in Whitley County, Kentucky, Jane died there on 30 Oct 1903; she was 78.
       
    iv. Mahala. Born in 1827, Tennessee, Mahala died in Pulaski County, Kentucky on 15 Nov 1854; she was 27. On 15 Jan 1846, when Mahala was 19, she married Anderson F. Freeman in Whitley County, Kentucky.4 He was born about 1824 in North Carolina.
       
    v. James C. Born on 10 Dec 1829 in Whitley County, Kentucky. Why, we don't know, but he was called "Germy" and often wouldn't answer to anything else. On 14 Mar 1852, when James C. was 22, he married Nancy Shelly, daughter of Nathan Shelly & Mary "Polly" Meadors, in Whitley County, Kentucky.1 Nancy was born on 20 Aug 1832 in Whitley County, Kentucky. Germy died there on 4 Aug 1911 at the age of 81. Nancy died there on 3 Feb 1921; she was 88.3
       
    vi. Sarah C. Born about 1831 in Whitley County, Kentucky, Sarah died on 19 Feb 1901; she was 70. On 25 Jul 1849, when Sarah was 18, she married Green C. Freeman in Whitley County, Kentucky.4
       
    vii. Mary Helen. Born on 30 Aug 1835 in Whitley County, Kentucky, Helen died there on 11 Aug 1856; she was 20.3 Buried in John Parker Cemetery, Whitley County, Kentucky.
       
    viii. George Washington. Born on 30 Nov 1837 in Whitley County, Kentucky, he died there on 24 Oct 1910 at the age of 72.7 He was buried in Highland Cemetery, Williamsburg, Whitley County, Kentucky. On 15 Aug 1859, at the age of 21, he married Elizabeth Renfro in Whitley County, Kentucky. She was born there on 10 Feb 1845 and died there on 6 Jun 1897 at the age of 52.
       
    x. Elizabeth. Born about 1840 in Whitley County, Kentucky,8 Elizabeth died there in 1910; she was 70. On 4 Sep 1859, when Elizabeth was 19, she married James W. Parker, a first or second cousin, in Whitley County, Kentucky. He was born on 27 Oct 1829 in Kentucky,3,8 James W. died in Whitley County, Kentucky on 28 Jan 1885; he was 55.3
       
    xi. Jesse F. Born on 18 Apr 1842 in Whitley County, Kentucky, Jesse died there on 1 Sep 1926; he was 84. Buried in Highland Cemetery, Williamsburg, Whitley County, Kentucky. On 30 May 1867, when Jesse was 25, he married Rachel A. Patrick, daughter of Andrew Jackson Patrick & Elizabeth Shelly, and niece of our great, great grandmother Sally Patrick Parker, in Whitley County, Kentucky. Born on 20 Aug 1848 in Whitley County, Kentucky, Rachel died there on 9 Dec 1925; she was 77. When he got too old to farm it himself, Sampson deeded over his land to Jesse and lived with Jesse and his family.
       
    xii. Milton (Died in childhood). Born about 1845.
       

Fourth Generation


4. William Henderson Parker. Born on 8 Apr 1824 in Claiborne County, Tennessee,9, Henderson came with his family to Whitley County, Kentucky, as a boy. On 3 Oct 1844, when he was 20, Henderson first married Sarah S. Patrick, daughter of Bryant Patrick & Nancy Davis, in Whitley County, Kentucky.4 Sally was born 13 Jan 1831 in North Carolina. Henderson was disabled in the course of his Army service during the Civil War, and never really recovered. About two months before his discharge from the Army, their oldest daughter died in childbirth. Sally's health was so impaired during the Civil War that she finally died in Whitley County on 2 Mar 1867, at the age of 36, when her youngest children (twins) were only 4 years old. He then married Nancy White, as set out below. After 1880, Henderson, Nancy, and their unmarried children moved from Whitley County, Kentucky, to Piney in Franklin County, Arkansas. Henderson, Nancy, and some of their children later moved to Wister, Choctaw Nation, Indian Territory, where Henderson died on 11 Mar 1898; he was 73. He is buried in City Cemetery, Wister, Oklahoma.
       
  They had the following children:
       
    i. Neworleana Jane. Born on 16 Jan 1846 in Whitley County, Kentucky, Jane died there on 25 Apr 1865; she was 19. Buried in Redbird Cemetery, Whitley County, Kentucky. In 1864, when Neworleana Jane was 17, she married Calvin V. West, son of Allen Russell West & Mary (Polly) Campbell. Born on 4 Jan 1844 in Whitley County, Kentucky,10 Cal died in Crawford County, Arkansas, in 1916; he was 71.
       
    ii. Henry Moss. Born about 1849 in Whitley County, Kentucky.5 On 28 Aug 1874, when Henry Moss was 25, he married Sally Meadors, daughter of Joel Meadors & Nancy Patrick, in Whitley County, Kentucky.1 Sally was born 1855/1856.11
       
    iii. Uriah. Born in Apr 1851 in Whitley County, Kentucky, Uriah died in Crawford County, Arkansas after 1900.12 Buried in Piney Cemetery, Crawford County, Arkansas. On 8 Feb 1872, when Uriah was 20, he married Nancy Melvina Roberts in Whitley County, Kentucky.4 She was born in 1855.13
       
  5. iv. James Calvin (1854-1912)
       
    v. Susan R. Born in 1855 in Whitley County, Kentucky, Susan died there in 1879; she was 24. On 19 Sep 1867, when Susan was 12, she married Jasper Newton White, son of Nicholas A. White & Nancy Anne Sumner, in Whitley County, Kentucky. Born in Jun 1848 in Whitley County, Kentucky, Jasper Newton died there in 1909; he was 60.
       
    vi. Emily (Died in childhood). Born on 25 Sep 1857 in Whitley County, Kentucky,1 Emily died there between 1860 and 1870.
       
    vii. George S. Born on 26 Nov 1858 in Whitley County, Kentucky.1 He died in infancy.
       
    viii. Green C. Born on 26 Nov 1859 in Whitley County, Kentucky. On 27 Jan 1881, when Green was 21, he first married Sarah Peters in Crawford County, Arkansas. Sarah died before 1928, possibly in Iowa. Green second married the thrice widowed Malinda Bolton, daughter of Josiah Bolton & Elizabeth Stanfield, possibly in Broken Arrow, Oklahoma. She was born 24 May 1858 in Kentucky,10,14 and had been married to James Liberty Sutton, Josiah Inman, and Thomas Moon. Malinda was the mother of Samantha Sutton, who married Alfred Frankin Parker. Green died in Bixby, Oklahoma on 1 Sep 1942; he was 82. Malinda died on 17 Jul 1951 in Bixby, Oklahoma.14 Both are buried in Bixby Cemetery, Bixby, Oklahoma.
       
    ix. John C. Born in Mar 1861 in Whitley County, Kentucky.
       
    x. Rutha (Identical Twin). Born on 19 Dec 1863 in Whitley County, Kentucky, In Scott County, Tennessee, on 29 Jan 1880, when Rutha was 16, she married Jasper Newton White, born in Jun 1848 in Whitley County, Kentucky, the son of Nicholas A. White & Nancy Anne Sumner. Rutha died young, about 1895, or possibly earlier, whereupon her identical twin, Sarah, came to stay with the children for a while. Nancy Jonckheere says that the children were very distraught when Sarah left, because it was like losing their mother again. After Rutha's death, Newt married Mary Ann Freeman, but I don't know whether he had children by her or not. Newt died in Whitley County in 1909 at the age of 60.
       
    xi. Sarah (Identical Twin). Born on 19 Dec 1863 in Whitley County, Kentucky. On 11 Dec 1883, when Sarah was nearly 20, she married Nathaniel Benton Smith in Whitley County, Kentucky. Sarah died 1 Jul 1943 in Whitley County and is buried there in Steely cemetery.
       
  On 22 Sep 1867, when William Henderson was 43, he second married Nancy White, daughter of Dempsey White & Nancy Perkins, in Whitley County, Kentucky. She was born on 22 Nov 1838 in Claiborne County, Tennessee.12 At the time she married Henderson, Nancy had a son William Troy White, whose name was later changed to William Troy Parker, and who was reportedly adopted by Henderson. Nancy died in McAlester, Pittsburg County, Oklahoma on 1 Apr 1928 at the age of 89.
       
  They had the following children:
       
    i. Mary S. ("May", a twin). Born on 22 Jul 1868 in Whitley County, Kentucky, May died in Wister, Choctaw Nation, Indian Territory on 12 May 1895; she was 26. Buried in Wister, Choctaw Nation, Indian Territory.
       
    ii. Jesse Buford (Twin). Born on 22 Jul 1868 in Williamsburg, Whitley County, Kentucky, Jesse Buford died in Hollis, Harmon County, Oklahoma on 22 Feb 1943; he was 74. Buried in Dryden Cemetery, Hollis, Harmon County, Oklahoma. On 8 Aug 1889, when Jesse Buford was 21, he married Emma Belle Tabor in Sebastian County, Arkansas. Born on 26 Oct 1871 in Polk County, Missouri, Emma Belle died in Hollis, Harmon County, Oklahoma on 8 Jun 1957; she was 85.
       
    iii. Lucy Idella. Born on 28 Dec 1869 in Whitley County, Kentucky, Lucy Idella died in McAllester, Pittsburg County, Oklahoma on 28 Sep 1943; she was 73. Buried in McAllester, Pittsburg County, Oklahoma. In 1889, when Lucy Idella was 19, she married Frank J. (Jim) Wright, (in Crawford County, Arkansas?). He was born in Nov 1867.
       
    iv. Vianna Bell. Born on 4 Sep 1871 in Whitley County, Kentucky, Vianna Bell died in McAllester, Pittsburg County, Oklahoma on 4 May 1954; she was 82. Buried in McAllester, Pittsburg County, Oklahoma. Vianna Bell married McClellan Wilson, M.D. Born on 26 Jun 1864, McClellan died on 15 Oct 1941; he was 77.3
       
    v. Frank Henderson. Born in May 1873 in Whitley County, Kentucky, Frank Henderson died in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma in 1953; he was 79. Buried in Heavner, LeFlore County, Oklahoma. Frank Henderson married Lucy, who was born in Feb 1877 in England.
       
    vi. George E. Born in 1876 in Whitley County, Kentucky, George died in Heavner, LeFlore County, Oklahoma in 1947; he was 71.3 Buried in Heavner, LeFlore County, Oklahoma. George married Elvira Mitchell. Born in 1877, Elvira died in 1946; she was 69.3
       
    vii. Sampson A. Born on 17 Mar 1878 in Whitley County, Kentucky, Sampson died in McAlester, Pittsburg County, Oklahoma on 4 Mar 1954; he was 75.3 Buried in McAlester, Pittsburg County, Oklahoma. Sampson married Nettie Carpenter, who was born on 10 Jan 1887. Nettie died in McAlester, Pittsburg County, Oklahoma on 17 May 1955; she was 68.3

Fifth Generation


5. James Calvin Parker. Born on 27 Dec 1854 in Whitley County, Kentucky, James Calvin died in Crawford County, Arkansas on 27 Mar 1912; he was 57. Buried on 29 Mar 1912 in Piney Cemetery, Crawford County, Arkansas. On 12 Mar 1876, when James Calvin was 21, he married Sarepta West, daughter of Allen Russell West & Mary (Polly) Campbell, in Whitley County, Kentucky.1 Born on 22 Dec 1853 in Whitley County, Kentucky,15 Sarepta died in Mulberry, Crawford County, Arkansas on 16 Jul 1910; she was 56.
       
  They had the following children:
       
    i. William Russell. Born on 8 Feb 1877 in Whitley County, Kentucky, William Russell died in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma on 8 Dec 1933; he was 56. Buried in Kellyville Cemetery, Creek County, Oklahoma. On 18 Feb 1900, when William Russell was 23, he first married Rachel Meadors in Crawford County, Arkansas. Born in May 1878 in Kentucky,10 Rachel died on 20 May 1902; she was 24. On 9 Sep 1903, when William Russell was 26, he second married Nancy Dyer, daughter of Benjamin Dyer & Mary Ann Earthley, in Crawford County, Arkansas.
       
    ii. Alfred Franklin. Born on 26 Jun 1879 in Whitley County, Kentucky, Frank died in Stonebluff, Wagoner County, Oklahoma, on 16 Dec 1938; he was 59. Buried on 19 Dec 1938 in Bixby Cemetery, Tulsa County, Oklahoma. In 1897, when Frank was 17, he married Samantha Sutton, daughter of James Liberty Sutton & Malinda Bolton. Born on 4 Apr 1878 in Whitley County, Kentucky,1 Samantha died in Stonebluff, Wagoner County, Oklahoma on 26 Mar 1939; she was 60.
       
    iii. Milly Susan Anna. Susy was born on 3 Apr 1883 in Mulberry, Crawford County, Arkansas,3 Susan married Robert Anderson Peters. Born on 10 Aug 1884, Anderson died on 25 Feb 1950 at the age of 65.3 After Anderson's death, Susy married a Creekmore. She died in Longview, Gregg County, Texas 23 Feb 1965 at the age of 81 and was buried 26 Feb 1965 in Peters Cemetery, Crawford County, Arkansas.
       
    iv. Josiah Bolton. Born on 16 Jun 1888 in Crawford, County, Arkansas, Joe died in Grove, Delaware County, Oklahoma on 9 Feb 1956; he was 67. Buried on 13 Feb 1956 in Bixby Cemetery, Tulsa County, Oklahoma. On 10 Nov 1913, when Joe was 25, he married Clara Hettie Meadors, daughter of Hampton Ballentine Meadors & Mary Surelda (Rildy) Creekmore, in Crawford County, Arkansas. Born in 1894 in Crawford County, Arkansas, Hettie died in Grove, Delaware County, Oklahoma in 1964; she was 70.
       
    v. James McKinley (1896-1945). Born on 27 Apr 1896 in Mulberry, Crawford County, Arkansas, Mac died in Palestine, Texas on 24 Mar 1945; he was 48. Buried in Restview Cemetery, Jacksonville, Texas. On 2 Apr 1916, when James McKinley was 19, he married Geneva Edna Anglen, daughter of Isaac Newton Anglen & Margaret Jane Langston, in Crawford County, Arkansas. Born on 24 Jan 1895 in Livingston County, Missouri Geneva died in Grand Prairie, Tarrant County, Texas on 19 Mar 1992; she was 97.
       
    vi. Mary Pain. Born on 24 Oct 1899 in Mulberry, Crawford County, Arkansas, Mary Pain died there on 26 Aug 1900 at the age of 10 months.

Sources


     
1.   Carol F. and Daniel Hopper, Whitley County Vital Statistics 1852-1910, (1990).
     
2.   1810 census.
     
3.   Tombstone.
     
4.   Carol F. Hopper, Tri County Knox-Laurel-Whitley Counties, Kentucky Early Marriages, (1987).
     
5.   1850 census.
     
6.   Carmaine Bruce Hall, Will Book One 1818-1852, Whitley County, Kentucky, (Liberty, Missouri: 1990).
     
7.   Cemeteries of Whitley County
     
8.   1860 census.
     
9.   Pension file.
     
10.   1900 census.
     
11.   1870 census.
     
12.   Don Trolinder.
     
13.   Whitley County, Kentucky marriage records.
     
14.   Ted Bolton.
     
15.   Charley Maynard Cornelius, Vital Statistics, Whitley County, Kentucky, March 1982.
     
16.   Memoir of Chrisman Harrison Parker (1806-1893).
     
17.   Jane Parker Bull's list of her brothers and their dates of birth.




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