Ann, daughter of Charles Pumpelly, of Owego,
N.Y., and secondly, March 1, 1854, to his deceased
wife s sister, Stella A. Pumpelly. He received
the degree LL.D. from Middlebury college, in
1865. He died in Owego, N.Y., Dec. 6, 1873.
PARKER, Josiah, representative, was born in
Macclesfield, Va., May 11, 1751 ; son of Nicholas
and Ann (Copeland) Parker; grandson of Nathaniel
and Ann Parker, and a descendant of Thomas
Parker, who settled on Smith s Neck, Isle of
AVight county, Va., in 1650. Josiah Parker was
married May 6, 1773, to Mary Pierce, widow of
Col. Joseph Bridger. He was a member of the
county committee of safety in 1775, and of the
Virginia convention tiiat met in March, July and
December, 1775. He was commissioned major in
the 5th Virginia regiment, Feb. 13, 1776 ; was
promoted lieutenant-colonel, July 28, 1777, and
colonel, April 1, 1778. His regiment served under
[137]
Gen. Charles Lee in Virginia, until the latter
part of 1776, when it was transferred to Washing
ton s army. He rendered distinguished service
at the battles of Trenton, Princeton and the
Brandy wine, and resigned from the army July 12,
1778. He commanded the militia on the south
side of the James river in Virginia, 1778-82 ; was
a member of tiie Virginia house of delegates
1780-81 ; naval officer at Portsmouth, Va., 1786,
and a candidate for election to the Virginia con
vention of 1788, but was defeated because he was
opposed to the adoption of the Constitution. He
was a representative in the 1st, 2d, 3d, 4th, 5th
and 6th congresses from the Norfolk district, Va,,
1789-1801, and was chairman of the committee on
naval affairs. He was a member of the Virginia
Society of the Cincinnati. He died in Maccles
field, Isle of Wight county, Va., March 18, 1810.
PARKER, Leonard Fletcher, educator, was
born in Arcade, N.Y., Aug. 3, 1825; son of Elias
and Dorothy (Fletcher) Parker ; grandson of Leo
nard and Mary (Foster) Parker, and of Gershom
and Sarah (Robinson) Fletcher, and a descendant
of Abraham Parker, of Chelmsford, Mass., about
1640, and of Robert Fletcher, of Concord, Mass.,
1630. He was graduated from Oberlin college,
Ohio, in 1851, and finished two years in the theo
logical department of Oberlin college in 1853. He
was married Aug. 21, 1853, to Sarah Candace,
daughter of Timothy and Harriet (Wilder)
Pearse, of Oberlin, Ohio, formerly of Sudbury,
Vt. He taught in public schools, 1841-53 ; was
superintendent of schools at Brownsville, Pa.,
1853-56. and at Grinnell, Iowa, 1856-60. He was
Carter professor of ancient languages at Iowa
college, 1860-70 ; and in 1864, with all the students
of the college of military age, enlisted in the 46th
Iowa infantry, Col. D. B. Henderson (q.v.), and
was 1st lieutenant of his company, declining the
captaincy in favor of a veteran invalid soldier.
He was a Republican member of the Iowa house
of representatives, 1868-70 ; professor of Greek
or of history at the State University of Iowa,
1870-87 ; Parker professor of history at Iowa col
lege, 1888-98, and was elected professor emeritus,
in 1898, when he retired from active teaching.
He was a member of the American History asso
ciation, and received the degree of A.M., in 1860,
and the honorary degree D.D. in 1895, from Ober
lin. He is the author of : History of Education
in Iowa, in No. 17 of state monographs (published
by the U.S., 189.5), and of pamphlets and maga
zine articles on literary, political and historical
subjects, including Address at the Semi-Centen-
nial of lou-a college ; The College on the Campus
and Beyond It ; Puritan Faith, not French Athe
ism, the Foundation of American Liberties, and
The Abuse of Grant s Des Moines Speech (1875),
in which he exposed the falsification of the
PARKER
PARKER
report of the speech which made the President
seem to oppose all education by the state except
in common schools.
PARKER, Linus, M. E. bishop, was born near
Vienna, Oneida county. N.Y., April 23, 1829 ; son
of John and Alvira (Wadhain) Parker, both of
Connecticut, and grandson of Eri and Joana
(Stoddard) Parker. His first ancestor in Amer
ica, William Parker, emigrated from Bristol,
England, and located in Saybrook, Conn., in its
early settlement. Linus Parker removed to New
Orleans, La., in early youth, engaged as a clerk,
and also attended college at Lewisburg, La., be
coming proficient in Latin and Greek. He served
in the Mexican war in Captain Girault s company
from Louisiana ; entered the Louisiana confer
ence of the Methodist Episcopal church, south,
Dec. 26, 1849, and was stationed at Lake Provi
dence in 1830 ; at Shreveport in 1851-52,
was ordained deacon, December, 1852. and elder
December, 1853, and was stationed in New Or
leans, Jan. o, 1853. He served as pastor in
principal stations until 1870, when he was elected
editor of The Christian Advocate, holding this
position until May, 1882, also acting as presiding
elder at various times. He was a delegate to
the General conference of the Methodist Episco
pal church, South, in 1866, and sat in its quad
rennial sessions, 1866-82. He was elected bishop
of the M. E. church. South, May, 1882, and filled
this office until his death. He was married June
7, 1853, to Sallie Fitzgerald, daughter of the Rev.
Alexander and - - (Burruss) Sale. She
died Sept. 13, 1853. and he was married secondly,
Jan. 20, 1858, to Ellen K., daughter of the Rev.
John Crenshaw and Emily L. (Nutting) Burruss.
She died Sept. 3, 1900. Bishop Parker died in
New Orleans, La.. March 5, 1885.
PARKER, Nahum, senator, was born in Shrews
bury, Mass,, March 14, 1760; son of Amos and
Anna (Stone) Parker ; grandson of Andrew and
Sarah (Whitney) Parker; great-grandson of
John Parker and a descendant of Thomas Parker,
who emigrated from England in the Susan and
Ellen in 1635 and settled first in Lynn, and then
in Reading, Massachusetts Bay colony. Nahum
Parker was a soldier in the Continental army
under General Gates and took part in the battles
that resulted in the capture of Burgoyne s forces
at Saratoga in 1777. He settled in Fitzwilliam,
N.H., in 1786. was a member of the board of
selectmen, 1790-94, and clerk and treasurer of
the town, 1792-1815. He was a representative in
the state legislature, 1794-1804 and 1806-07 ; a
member of the governor s council, 1804-05. and
was U.S. senator from New Hampshire, 1807-10,
resigning in 1810 when he was succeeded by
Charles Cutts (q.v.). He was justice of the court
of common pleas for Cheshire county, which
included Sullivan county, 1807-13 ; an associate
justice of the Western circuit, 1813-16 ; judge of
the court of sessions of Cheshire county in 1821
and of the court of common pleas for Hillsborough
county in 1822. He was also a member of the
New Hampshire senate and its president in 1828.
He was married, Aug. 11, 1783, to Mary Deeth of
Gerry, Mass., and their son, Amos Andrew
Parker (born Oct. 8, 1791, University of Ver
mont, 1813, lawyer, editor of New Hampshire
Statesman, author of Recollections of Lafayette
(1879)) celebrated the hundredth anniversary of
his birth, and died in Fitzwilliam, N.H., May 12,
1893. Nahum Parker died in Fitzwilliam, N.IL,
Nov. 12. 1839.
PARKER, Peter, missionary and diplomat,
was born in Frarningham, Mass., June 18, 1804;
son of Nathan and Catharine (Murdock) Parker,
grandson of Peter and Ruth (Eaton) Parker,
great-grandson of John and Experience (Cloves)
Parker, and a descendant of Hananiah Parker of
Reading, Mass. He was a student at Amherst
college, 1827-30, was graduated at Yale, A.B.,
1831, M.D., 1834; and attended Yale Divinity
school, 1832-34. He was appointed by the A.B.
C. F. M., a missionary to China ; was ordained
May 16, 1834, and embarked for Canton in June,
1834. In October, 1835, he opened an ophthalmic
hospital in Canton, which soon became a general
hospital, and not only attended over 2,000 sick,
but preached to his patients in their own language
and trained several in medicine and surgery.
He came back to the United States at the out
break of the opium war between China and Eng
land in 1840, and was married, March 29, 1841,
to Harriet Colby, daughter of John Ordway
Webster, of Augusta, Maine. He returned to
China in 1842, accompanied by his wife, who
was the first foreign woman to reside in Canton.
Dr. Parker continued the hospital 1842-55. lie
was appointed secretary and interpreter to the
U.S. legation to China in 1844 ; and in 1845
resigned his connection with the American
board to serve as charge d affaires in the absence
of the U.S. minister. In 1853 he made a brief
visit to the United States, where he was appointed
U.S. commissioner to China with plenipotentiary
powers for the revision of the treaty of 1844, and
served as such, 1855-57. In this capacity he was
again in China, 1855-57, and then settled in
Washington, D.C. He was founder and for
several years president of the Medical Missionary
Society of China, became a regent of the Smith
sonian Institution in 1868. a corporate member
of the A. B.C. of F.M. in 1871, and in that
vear a delegate of the Evangelical Alliance to
petition the Emperor of Russia to permit freedom
of worship in the Baltic provinces. He was
president of the Washington branch of the
[13S]
PARKER
Evangelical Alliance in 1887. Yale conferred
upon him the degree of A.M. in 1858. He is the
author of : Journal of an Expedition from
Singapore to Japan (1838); A Statement respect
ing Hospitals in China (1841); Eulogy on Henry
Wilson (1880). He died in Washington, B.C.,
Jan. 10. 1888.
PARKER, Richard Elliott, senator, was born
at Rock Spring, Westmoreland county, Va.,
Dec. 27, 1783 ; son of Capt. William*Harwar and
Mary (Sturman) Parker, and grandson of Judge
Richard and Elizabeth (Beale) Parker. He studied
law at La \vfield, Va., under his grandfather, Judge
Richard Parker, was admitted to the bar and set
tled in practice in his native county, which he re
presented in the Virginia legislature for several
years. He was colonel of the militia in West
moreland county at the outbreak of the war of
1812, and served as colonel of the 35th Virginia
regiment, with which he defended the Northern
Neck from British attacks, 1813-14. He was
wounded in the action at White House, Sept. 16,
1814, returning after the war to the practice of
law, and was elected a judge of the general court,
July 26, 1817. He was elected to the U.S. senate
to rill the vacancy caused by the resignation of
Benjamin Walking Leigh, serving from Dec. 15,
1836, to Feb. 13, 1837, when he resigned to accept
a seat on the bench of the Court of Appeals of
Virginia, to iill the vacancy caused by the death
of Dabney Carr, Jan. 8, 1837. He declined the
position of attorney-general in the cabinet of
President Van Bin-en, in 1840, as successor to Felix
Grundy. Ke married Elizabeth, daughter of Dr.
William Foushee, of Richmond, Va. He died at
the li Retreat," Snickersville. Va., Sept. 9, 1840.
PARKER, Richard Wayne, representative,
was born in Newark. N.J., Aug. 6, 1848 ; son of
Cortlandt (q.v.)., and Elizabeth Wolcott (Stites)
Parker, and grandson of Richard Wayne Stites,
of Morristown, N.J. He was graduated at the
College of New Jersey, A. B., 1867, A.M., 1870,
and at Columbia Law school LL.B., 1869. He
was admitted to the bar in 1870, and practiced
witli his father in Newark. He was married,
Jan. 2, 1884, to Eleanor, daughter of Gen. Wil
liam W. (q.v.) and Eleanor (Kinzie) Gordon, of
Savannah, Georgia. He was a representative in
the New Jersey legislature 1885-86 ; was the
Republican candidate for congress from the
sixth New Jersey district in 1892, and was elected
a representative in the 54th, 55th, 56th, 57th and
58th congresses, 1895-1905.
PARKER, Samuel, second bishop of Massachu
setts and 10th in succession in the American
episcopate, was born in Portsmouth, N.H., Aug. 17,
1744; son of Judge William and Elizabeth
(Grafton) Parker ; grandson of William and
Zerviah (Stanley) Parker, of England, who fled
OLD TRIM I TV CHURCH BOSTOAI
[139]
to America and settled in Portsmouth, N.H., in
1703. Zerviah Stanley, a daughter of the Earl of
Derby, married without her father s consent and
abandoned her claims to nobility. Samuel Parker
was graduated at Harvard, A.B. 1764 ; A.M., 1767.
He was married in
November, 1766, to
Annie, daughter of
John Cutler of Bos
ton, Mass. He pre
pared for holy or
ders while teaching
school, and was
elected assistant of
Trinity church in
Boston, Mass., in
October 1773. He
was ordered deacon
in the chapel of
Ful ham palace,
London, Eng., Feb. 24, 1774, and ordained priest
three days later by Dr. Terrich, Lord Bishop of
London. He assumed the duties of assistant in
November, 1774, and during the Revolution was
the only Anglican clergyman to remain at his
post and support the cause of the colonists. He
was elected rector of Trinity church, June 27,
1779, and after the war went about trying to re
organize and establish the scattered churches and
to reinstate the Society for the Propagation of
the Gospel. He was elected bishop of the Eastern
diocese to succeed Bishop Bass, deceased, in 1803,
and was consecrated at Trinity church, New York
city, Sept. 14, 1804, by Bishop White, assisted by
Bishops Claggett, Jarvis, and Moore. He never
discharged the duties of the office, being pros
trated with gout on his return from New York
from which he did not recover. He received the
degree D.D. from the University of Pennsylvania
in 1789. He published an Annual Election Ser
mon before the Legislature of Masschusetts (1793) ;
a Sermon for tlie Benefit of the Boston Female
Asylum (1803), and several occasional discourses.
He died in Boston, Mass., Dec. 6, 1804.
PARKER, Samuel, missionary explorer, was
born in Ashfield, Mass., April 23, 1779; son of
Elisha and Thankful (Marchant) Parker, and a
descendant of Robert Parker, the immigrant, who
settled in Barnstable, Mass. Eiisha Parker, a
native of Yarmouth, Mass., was a member of the
coast guard at the beginning of the Revolution,
and afterward a soldier in the engagements from
Bennington to Saratoga, 1775-77. Samuel Parker
was graduated at Williams college. A.B., 1806,
A.M., 1809; was principal of the academy at
Brattleboro, Vt., and was graduated at Andover
Theological seminary in 1810, going as a mission
ary to Steuben and Allegany counties. N.Y. He
was ordained, Dec. 24, 1812, and was pastor of
PARKER
PARKER
the Congregational church at Danby, N.Y., 1812-
27. He was agent for the Auburn Theological
seminary; was pastor at Fabius, N.Y. , 1827-32 ;
at Middlefield, Mass., 1832-33 ; conducted a young
women s school at Ithaca, N.Y., 1833-35, and was
sent to Oregon by the
First Presbyterian
church, Ithaca, un
der the auspices of
the A.B.C.F.M., 1833,
to explore and locate
missions, returning
by the way of the
Sandwich Islands in
1837. He lectured in
the eastern states on
the character of Ore
gon Territory, enlist
ed Dr. Marcus Whit
man and other mis-
sionaries to work
there, and did much
to set forth the value of that territory, then
in strenuous dispute. He was the first missionary
of the A.B.C.F.M. beyond the Rocky Mountains,
and the discoverer of an easy grade for a rail
road through the Rocky Mountains to the Pacific
ocean. He was married first to a Miss Sears of
Ashfield, Mass. .and secondly, in 181"), to Jerusha
Lord (1790-1857) of Salisbury, Conn., a niece of
Noah Webster. He is the author of Exploring
Tour Beyond the Rocky Mountains (1838), which
was republished several times, and of which a
London edition was issued. He died in Ithaca,
N.Y., March 24, 1866, and in 1901 a tablet to his
memory was placed in the First Presbyterian
Church of Ithaca.
PARKER, Samuel Parker, clergyman and
educator, was born in Boston, Mass., Sept. 10,
1805 ; son of John Rowe and Mary (Hamilton)
Parker ; grandson of the Rt. Rev. Samuel and An
nie (Cutler) Parker. He prepared for college at the
Boston Latin school and was graduated at Harvard
in 1824. He was usher and sub-master of the Bos
ton Latin school, 1824-30. and prepared for holy
orders under Bishop Griswold of the Eastern
diocese. He was ordered deacon in 1834 and
priested in 1835 by Bishop Griswold. He was
married, April 20, 1836, to Eliza Pomeroy, grand
daughter of Judge Theodore Sedgwick and niece
of Catherine M. Sedgwick, the authoress. He
went as a missionary to Stockbridge, where he
erected St. Paul s church and built up a flourish
ing parish. He was assistant to Dr. Muhlenberg
in the Church of the Holy Communion, New
York city ; rector of St. Mary s church, Staten
Island, where he erected a stone church ; return
ed to St. Paul s, Stockbridge, and succeeded Dr.
Huntington at Grace church, Amherst, where he
also built a fine church. He next labored in
New York city ; was rector of St. Paul s, Stock-
bidge, and of Trinity, Lenox, and conducted a
preparatory school at Stockbridge. He was rec-
to r at Christ church, Exeter ; Epiphany, Win
chester ; and Trinity, Melrose, and officiated in
vacant churches in western Massachusetts, includ
ing Christ church, Sheffield, making his home in
Stockbridge and devoting much of his time to
the public library, of which he largely selected the
books purchased and procured funds for its en
largement. He received the honorary degree of
D.D. from Union college in 1861. He died in
Stockbridge, Mass., Nov. 16, 1880.
PARKER, Theodore, clergyman, was born in
Lexington, Mass., Aug. 24, 1810 ; son of John and
Hannah(Stearns) Parker ; grandson of Capt. John
Parker, an officer at the battle of Lexington, and
a descendant of Thomas Parker, the immigrant,
Lynn, 1635. Theodore worked on his father s
farm and in his shop ; was a student at the public
school ; attended a day school in Lexington one
term in 1826, where he took up algebra, Latin
and Greek ; from 1827 was self-instructed, mak
ing rapid progress, and in 1830 was examined and
admitted to Harvard,
where he passed his
successive examina
tions in each class,
but under the rules of
the college was not
allowed to receive a
degree. He taught
in a private school in
Boston in 1831, in a
private school in
Watertown, Mass.,
1832-42, and prose
cuted his post-grad
uate studies, includ
ing theology, in 1834.
The honorary degree
of A.M. was conferred upon him by Harvard in
1840. He was ordained pastor of the Unitarian
society at West Roxbury, Mass., June 21, 1837,
remaining minister of that society until February.
1845, when he was excommunicated by the Uni
tarian association on account of alleged heret
ical teachings, and resigned his pastorate. He
formed and was installed as pastor of a new
society, Jan. 4, 1846, and pi eached in Boston at the
Melodeon, 1846-52, and at Music Hall, 1852-59.
The new society, aided by the reform movement
in Massachusetts which had reached its height,
grew rapidly. Mr. Parker was a leader in effect
ing the escape of runaway slaves in Boston and
defended and helped the revolutionary movement
of John Brown in the West. He accepted the
editorship of the Jfastiaclnisetts Quarterly and
[140]
PARKER
PARKER
conducted it, 1847-50. During the winter of 1857,
while on a lecturing tour in central New York, he
contracted a severe cold which settled on his
lungs, and in January, 1859. he made a voyage to
Santa Cruz for the benefit of his health. In May,
1859. he went to Southampton and thence to
Switzerland and Rome, where he suffered a relapse
during the wet season, and was taken to Florence,
where he died and was buried in the cemetery
outside the walls, the Rev. Mr. Cunningham, an
old friend, conducting the funeral service. Busts
were made by William W. Story and Robert
Hart, and in January, 1902, a bronze statue by
Robert Kraus was erected on the lawn of the
First Parish (Unitarian) church at West Rox-
bury by the society. He is the author of : A
Discourse of Matters Pertaining to Religion
(1849); Occasional Sermons and Speeches (2 vols.,
1852); Ten Sermons on Religion (1853); Sermons
on Theism, Atheism and the Popular Theology
(1853) ; Additional Speechesand Addresses(2 vols.,
1855): Trial of Theodore Parker for the "Misde
meanor of a Speech in Faneuil Hall against
Kidnapping" (1855); Tiro Christmas Celebrations
and Experience as a Minister (1859); a volume of
Prayers (1862), and Historic Americans (1870).
His complete works were edited by Frances P.
Cobbe (14 vols., 1863-71). and also Lessons from
the World of Matter and the World of Man, selec
tions from his unpublished sermons by Rufus
Leighton (1865). His biography was written by
John AVeiss (1861), and O. B. Frothingham (1874).
In October, 1900, his name received twenty-one
votes for a place in the Hall of Fame for Great
Americans, New York university, being fifth in
"Class G, Preachers and Theologians." number
ing twenty-six names, of which but three,
Beecher, Channing and Edwards, received a
place. He dieil in Florence, Italy, May 10, 1860.
PARKER, Willard, surgeon, was born at Hills-
borough. N.H.. Sept. 2, 1800 ; son of Jonathan
and Hannah (Clark) Parker ; gi-andson of Capt.
Peter Clark, and a descendant of Abraham Parker,
who emigrated from England to Massachusetts
Bay colony in 1610, and settled first in Woburn
and afterward in Chelmsford, Mass. His parents,
who were farmers, removed to Chelmsford in
1805, and he worked on the farm and attended
the public school winters until 1829. He taught
in the district schools, 1819-22, and was graduated
at Harvard, A.B., 1826. A.M., 1829. He taught
school in Charlestown, Mass.: attended the lec
tures of Dr. John C. Warren, 1826-27 : was
assistant in the U.S. Marine hospital at Chelsea,
Mass, 1827-29 ; studied surgery under Dr. Warren
during the winter of 1828-29, and was graduated
at Harvard, M.D., in 1830, and at Berkshire
Medical college (Mass.) M.D.. 1831. He delivered
a course of lectures on anatomy in the Vermont
Medical school at Woodstock, 1829-30 ; was pro
fessor of anatomy and surgery, Colby university,
1830-33, and in the Berkshire Medical college,
1830-33 ; of anatomy and physiology in Geneva
college, 1834-36 ; professor of surgery in the
Cincinnati university, 1836-37 ; visited Europe in
1837 ; settled in New York city in 1839, where he
was connected with the College of Physicians
and Surgeons as professor of surgery, 1839-69,
professor of clinical surgery, 1870-80, and profes
sor emeritus, 1880-84. He was twice married ;
first, in 1839, to Caroline Allen of Massachusetts,
and secondly, to Henriette Bissell. He instituted
college clinics in 1840, became a visiting surgeon
to Bellevue hospital in 1847, and to the New York
hospital in 1856, in the meantime establishing
a large practice. He became president of the
New York state inebriate asylum in 1865, suc
ceeding Dr. Valentine Mott, and was a consulting
surgeon to the Roosevelt, St. Luke s and Mt. Sinai
hospitals. He was active in the organization of
the New York Pathological society in 1843 ; of
the hospital for the relief of widows and orphans
of medical men in 1846, and of the New York
Academy of Medicine in 1847, becoming its pres
ident in 1856. He was also influential in estab
lishing the New York city board of health, 1864-
66, and served as a member of the board. He was
a member of several scientific societies of the
United States and Europe. He received the
degree LL.D. from the College of New Jersey in
1870. The Willard Parker hospital for contagious
diseases was erected and named in his honor.
His discoveries in practical surgery include the
operation of cystotomy, for the relief of chronic
cystitis, an operation for the cure of abscess of
the appendix vermiformis and one for the la
ceration of the perineum during parturition.
He was also the first in the country to call atten
tion to the phenomena of the concussion of the
nerves, as distinguished from that of the nerve-
centres, and to report cases of malignant pustule.
His monographs include : Cystotomy (1850) ;
Spontaneous Fractures (1852); Concussion of
Nerves (1856); On the High Operation for Stone
in the Female (1855) ; Ligature of the Subclavian
Artery (1864), and a lecture on Cancer (1873).
He died in New York city, April 25, 1884.
PARKER, William Harwar, naval officer, was
born in New York city, Oct. 8, 1826 ; son of Fox-
hall Alexander and Sara (Bogardus) Parker. He
was graduated at the U.S. Naval academy in
1748, and was promoted lieutenant in 1855. His
brother, Foxhall Alexander Parker (q.v.), was a
commander in the U.S. navy during the civil
war. William Harwar Parker was dismissed from
the U.S. naval service, April 20, 1861, having