Isaac Parker

Duane's take

Here's how the official marker tells it: and I'll do my best to give it the weight it deserves. Now, Parker County, Texas; you've probably noticed the name. Well, this marker is about the man himself.

Isaac Parker. Pioneer, soldier, lawmaker. Those three words are right there on the stone, and by the time I'm done, you'll understand why every one of them earned its place.

Isaac Parker came into this world on April 7, 1793, way out in Elbert County, Georgia. That's the tail end of the eighteenth century, folks; before Texas was Texas, before any of this was even a notion. He had a long road ahead of him, though he couldn't have known it yet.

Forty years he lived before he ever set foot in Texas. He came in 1833, when this land was still a province of Mexico and the word "Texas" could get a man's pulse runnin' fast for all kinds of reasons. Three years after that, 1836; a year Texans don't need much reminding about; Isaac Parker was serving in Elisha Clapp's Company.

A soldier when it counted. But soldierin' wasn't the whole of the man. When the Republic of Texas needed lawmakers, Isaac Parker answered that call too.

He served in the Congress of the Republic; not for a year, not for two, but from 1839 all the way through 1845. Six years helping steer a young republic that was still figurin' out what it wanted to be when it grew up. And 1845 was a busy year for Isaac Parker.

He was part of the Constitutional Convention; the gathering that would write the terms of Texas joining the United States. The man had a hand in shaping this place at nearly every turn. He went on to serve as a State Senator as well.

Isaac Parker lived long enough to see an awful lot change. Born in Georgia in 1793, died in Parker County, Texas, on April 14, 1883. Ninety years, give or take a week.

Pioneer, soldier, lawmaker. Some men pass through history. Others leave their name on the map.

Isaac Parker, it seems, managed both.

What the marker says

To the memory of Isaac Parker pioneer, soldier and law maker. Born April 7, 1793 in Elbert County, Georgia. Came to Texas in 1833. Served in Elisha Clapp's Company in 1836. Member of Congress of the Republic of Texas, 1839-1845, of the Constitutional Convention in 1845. State Senator. Died April 14, 1883 in Parker County. (1936)