Fayette-Shelby-State County KyArchives Biographies.....Parker, Robert Henry September 16, 1828 - September 15, 1896 ************************************************ Copyright. All rights reserved. http://www.usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm http://www.usgwarchives.net/ky/kyfiles.html ************************************************ File contributed for use in USGenWeb Archives by: T. Bradford Willis http://www.genrecords.net/emailregistry/vols/00031.html#0007638 October 11, 2012, 1:34 pm Source: Family Records Author: Lavinia McDaniel Ward ROBERT HENRY PARKER Grandpa Parker was born at Versailles, Kentucky, September 16, 1828, dying one day before his 68th birthday. His parents were Jane Logan Allen Parker and Dr. John Todd Parker, an eminent physician of Lexington, Kentucky. On the maternal side he was the grandson of Col. John Allen who was killed in the War of 1812, and on the paternal side he was the grandson of Major Robert Parker who fought with the Virginia line in the Revolutionary War. His great grandfather, General Benjamin Logan, won fame in this same war. Major Robert Parker, Grandpa's grandfather, married Elizabeth R Porter, eldest daughter of General Andrew Porter, also a Revolutionary War hero. The couple built the first two-story house in Lexington in the late 1790s. The husband died shortly afterwards (in 1800), and his widow and six children lived on in the imposing house (a drawing of which was shown on your invitation-letter to this re-union). This home was where our grandfather Parker's father (Dr. John Todd) was reared. Our great grandfather's (Dr. John) sister, Eliza, married Robert Todd. They were the parents of Mary Todd Lincoln, wife of President Abraham Lincoln. So our grandfather Parker and Mary Todd were first cousins. In their childhood they each played in the yard of this old Parker home in Lexington. Our Grandpa Parker was college educated. He was widely known in Kentucky, and later in Texas, for his warm-hearted generosity and hospitality. He was a man of strong convictions and indomitable energy, bravery, and kindness-doing many charitable deeds of which the world knew nothing. His large size make him a conspicuous figure in any crowd, his being about 6 ½ feet tall and weighing 360 pounds. Notwithstanding his size, he was a very active man. He married Sarah Ann (also called Sallie) Clarke in 1851. She was the daughter of Harriet Julian Clarke and Joseph Clarke, who fought in the War of 1812. The parents of Sallie lived in Franklin County, Kentucky. In 1860, the couple moved the Texas with three children-they had lost one of their two daughters, Mary Jackson Parker, at about 2½ years of age. The Parkers settled on a farm near McKinney, Texas. This is where their other eight children were born later. When the Civil War broke out Grandpa Parker enlisted in the Confederate Army, serving in the Commissary Department. After the war he engaged in stock- shipping from Shreveport to New Orleans for a short time. They returned to McKinney. Here was where their son, Joseph, was accidentally killed. In 1883, he moved his family to Abilene (Texas) on the last day of the year. At first Grandpa worked for the only lumber company in this new town. A short time later he established his own company. About 1884 the Parkers built the first two-story frame home erected in Abilene. It was built at 2nd and Butternut a few hundred yards from the Parker Lumber Company. This is where Grandpa died in 1896 and where his wife continued to live until her death 28 years later. Our grandparents had a part in building the First Presbyterian Church at 3rd and Cedar. They had the pulpit furnishings made to order in the East, and gave the seven pieces to the new church. (You will see these lovely walnut articles on our tour.) Additional Comments: Written by Lavinia McDaniel Ward in 1984 for the Parker-Willis reunion in Abilene, Texas. Photo: http://www.usgwarchives.net/ky/fayette/photos/bios/parker540gbs.jpg File at: http://files.usgwarchives.net/ky/fayette/bios/parker540gbs.txt This file has been created by a form at http://www.genrecords.org/kyfiles/