Biography of Peter Parks, Bingham Township, Clinton County, Michigan Copyright (c) 1998 by Linda C. Harris Atiemo-Obeng. This copy contributed for use in the USGenWeb Archives. ************************************************ Copyright. All rights reserved. http://www.usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm http://www.usgwarchives.net/mi/mifiles.htm ************************************************ THE BLUE EYED INDIAN BOY An Account of the Abduction and Life of Peter Parks Assembled and written by Linda C. Harris Atiemo-Obeng November 1, 1998 Silas Leonard Parks was born in Arlington Vermont about 1799 to 1801 depending on the record one reads. At the age of twelve he ran away to become a bugle boy in the War of 1812. He served in Captain Benjamin Smead's Company the 11th U S infantry as a Private. He later married Betsey Elizabeth Brown whom was born in Chatham Ontario Canada. The Park's joined the Rochester Colony Association formed in New York February 29, 1836. The members of the Rochester Colony made their plans and traveled to the "far west". They journeyed to Detroit by water and then followed the Grand River Trail to a point where Laingsburg MI now stands, and struck north "through the trackless forest." They had to cut a trail through the woods to travel. The twenty- mile trip took nine days to complete. For more details refer to History of Clinton Co. MI pp. 478-479. Silas purchased forty acres of land in Clinton Co. MI under the provisions of the Act of Congress of the 24th April 1820 for the sale of Public Lands. The description according to the certificate dated 2 November 1837 The North East quarter of the North East quarter of Section twenty four in Township eight, North of range one West, in the District of lands subject to sale at Ionia, Michigan, containing forty acres. And a second certificate dated 10 October 1839 and registered with the U S Land Office reads: the South East quarter of the North West quarter of Section three, in Township Seven. North of Range two. West in the District of Lands subject to sale at Ionia Michigan. Containing forty acres. The Park's settled in Bingham Township on the banks of the Maple River in Clinton Co. MI with their young family. A History of Clinton County Michigan states that Mary, daughter of Nathan Smith of Olive, taught Bingham's first school on the Silas Parks place. The schoolhouse was an abandoned cabin, and the pupils were from the families of Lucius Morton, Silas Parks and Benjamin Finkle. William James Parks was born August 10, 1835 and Peter Parks was born the following year. (The date of Peter's birth is unknown and differs in various accounts; his age when found also varies from 40-43) Many accounts of the following story have been written over the years. One of the stories was told by William J. Parks himself and was recorded by the St. Johns News September 10, 1903. St. John's News September 10,1903 ROMANTIC STORY OF DUPLAIN SETTLER'S CHILD STOLEN BY THE INDIANS BECAME A GREAT INDIAN CHIEF AND FOR FORTY YEARS HIS IDENTITY REMAINED UNKNOWN Chief Fitcher, Who Died Near Chesaning the child of Silas L. Parks, One of "The Colony" Pioneers A romantic story of interest to Clinton county people was related at the recent picnic of the Shiawassee Pioneer's Association. It was told by William J. Parks of near Durand regarding the famous white chief of the Indians, James Fitcher II whose real name was Parks, and who was the speaker's own brother. Thirteen families from Rochester New York settled Rochester Colony, in Duplain Township, in 1836. One of the original families that made that famous settlement was the Parks family, which consisted of Silas L. Parks and his wife, Betsy Elizabeth Parks and their children among whom was William J. Parks and his little brother Peter Parks. "Shortly after the founding of Rochester Colony," says William J. Parks, "Our family was living in a cabin situated on one of the Indian trails that led up to the settlement. At the time my brother, Peter was lost, mother had gone down the trail several miles to visit and care for a sick neighbor. My father was asleep in an upper room of the cabin and she placed little Peter under my care. "While my mother was away in some way the little boy slipped out of the house into the woods, and we afterwards learned that he made the attempt to go to his mother. As soon as we realized that Peter was surely lost, a careful search was not only made of the premises, but of the forest for many miles around. "Near the margin of a small stream on the trail to the house visited by his mother, his tracks were seen, but here ended all trace of him. Although we came to the conclusion that the Indians had stolen Peter, we not only searched the stream for his body, but we hunted the woods in our vicinity for nearly a year. But the search for Peter did not end here. For more than five years, when father would hear of an Indian camp that was said to contain a white boy, that camp was visited and thoroughly searched, but without avail. "But Peter was alive and well. People noticed the blue-eyed little 'Indian' and suspected that the child was not the chief's son, but Duplain and Chesaning were much farther away those days than now, and news of the chief's foster child never reached Duplain. While they were carefully searching the camp of distant tribes little Peter was either in the county of Shiawassee or Saginaw. The boy was duly announced as the old chief's successor in after years. He excelled in all Indian games, and was especially noted as a marksman. He often came to Owosso and was accustomed to shoot at a target on East Exchange Street. It is a strange fact that the boy's father and brother often met him, in fact were well acquainted with the young chieftain, but did not learn until after years that he was their own flesh and blood. "While Old Chief Fitcher was alive Peter was known by the Indians far and wide as 'Little Jim Fitcher'. When the Old chief died, 'Little Jim' succeeded to the chieftainship of the remnant of the Fitcher tribe. He was then called 'Chief Jim'. "In 1876 Jim's foster mother died and on her death bed she revealed the true story of his life. He was then 43 years of age and had lived all his life among the Indians and the ties of blood were opposed by stronger ones of life long habit and association. Chief Fitcher, who had become a preacher, remained with his copper colored neighbors until his death three years ago in Indiantown." William J. Parks and his family were living in New Haven and Chief Jim came over from Indiantown with an Indian and visited his brother. He came to talk with his brother about the possibility of getting a portion of his father, Silas Parks, estate. But he never made a claim for the estate when he found that he would have to abandon his tribal relation and declare under the name of Peter Parks. Like a brave honest man that he was, he decided to remain with his Indian friends until the end. _________________________________________________ The family accounts say that Peter was three years old and William was seven when Peter was taken. He was hidden in a hollow log and taken off by another tribe and later returned to her. Silas Park's was old and sickly when Peter came to visit and Silas never knew that his son was found. Elizabeth died in 1858 and never knew the fate of her son. Jim Fitcher (Fisher) married Julia David and they had three sons: John Fisher who married Ida Elk Layton Fisher who never married Archie Fisher who married Margaret Coon Their stepdaughters were: Jeanette Fisher who married Tom Weidon Emily Fisher who married John Shaw Frances Fisher who passed on at the age of eight years The Silas Parks family moved to Chesaning where he purchased 160 acres (SE corner of Sec. 8) in 1841 and recorded in August 1842. Their daughter Lucinda Parks was the first white child born in Chesaning in May of 1842. The Silas and Betsey Parks had twelve children in all William J., Peter, Amanda, John W. Lucinda, Leonard, Mary, Anson, Elon G., Albert and Francis. Betsey Parks is buried with her infant son Leonard Parks at the Howard Cemetery in Shiawassee Co. Silas Parks later married Philena Currier. They had one child Philena J. Parks. Silas Parks died 8 APR 1876 in Burton, MI and is buried at the Evergreen Cemetery in Grand Blanc, MI. The Parks family held an annual reunion until the 1960's that was the longest running family reunion in Michigan. Each year a poem about the story of Peter was read. Several family members hold the poem, other accounts and supporting files. SOURCES: St Johns News; Owosso Argus Press 16 Dec, 1970; History of Clinton Co.; History of Genesee Co. p 293; Chesaning Illustrated; Shiawassee Gazette 14 May 1973; Shiawassee Gazette 12 February 1976; Early History of Owosso by Adele Ball; Michigan Historical Collections Vol. XXX pp.367-370. The 1850 and 1860 Census of Michigan. The files of the Chesaning Library, The writings and research of Pearl Harris Haak (descendant of Lucinda Parks DuPaul Findley) and Corabelle DeClerg (descendant of Wm. J. Parks), Janet M. Snyder, Bruce and Muriel Haak, Ron Harris, Karen Ingram and the research of the author Linda Harris Atiemo-Obeng. dz