James W. Parker

James William Parker
James William Parker
Born	July 4, 1797; Franklin County, Georgia, or Elbert County, Georgia
Died	1864; Houston County, Texas, Confederate States of America
Resting place	Pilgrim Cemetery, Elkhart, Anderson County, Texas
Known for	Member of the Consultation of Texas Representatives (1835); Member of the original Texas Rangers (1835); Survivor and witness of the raid on Fort Parker, Texas (May 19, 1836); Searched for the survivors of the Fort Parker massacre (1836-1845); Author of Narrative of the Perilous Adventures, Miraculous Escapes and Sufferings of Rev. James W. Parker . . . (Louisville, 1844);
Spouse	1st Martha Duty 2nd Lavina E. Chaffin
Children	Rachel Parker
Parent	John Parker Sarah White
Relatives	Daniel Parker, Cynthia Ann Parker, John Richard Parker, Peta Nocona, Quanah Parker

James W. Parker (July 4, 1797 – 1864) was the uncle of Cynthia Ann Parker and the great uncle of Quanah Parker, principal chief of the Comanche. A man of English American descent, he was a member of the large Parker frontier family that settled in east Texas in the 1830s.

Parker was present in 1836 during the raid of Fort Parker by Comanches and allied tribes near present-day Groesbeck, Texas. During that raid, his daughter, Rachel Plummer, his grandson, James Plummer, his niece Cynthia Ann Parker, and his nephew John Richard Parker were kidnapped by a Native American raiding party. Parker made the search for his family a lifetime obsession. For nine years he roamed the Comancheria searching for his lost relatives.

Many historians and Hollywood observers believe that Parker was the inspiration for John Wayne's character Ethan Edwards in the John Ford movie, The Searchers.

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