Daniel Parker
(1781-1861)
Daniel Parker was born on August 7, 1781, in Newburyport, Massachusetts, to William Parker and Mary Warner. His father was 36 years old at the time of his birth, and his mother was 29.
He married Priscilla Mulloy on October 24, 1816, in Campbell County, Kentucky.
Early Life and Enterprise
At the age of seven, Daniel moved with his family to western Pennsylvania, where he lived for several years before settling in southeastern Ohio near Pomeroy. There, he became active in the Halcyon Church.
Between 1809 and 1810, Daniel and his business partner, Alvin Bingham, traveled by flatboat down the Mississippi River to New Orleans. During this time, they worked to improve a patented hemp-breaking machine and a washing machine. He later returned north by way of Tennessee and Kentucky, supporting himself through horse trading and the manufacture of these machines between 1810 and 1815.
Ministry and Community Life
Daniel became a Restorationist minister, traveling extensively throughout southern Ohio and northern Kentucky. He and Priscilla were married through the offices of their mutual friend, James Kennedy.
Following their marriage, they settled at Mount Hygiene near New Richmond, Ohio, in 1816. In 1839, they established the Clermont Academy near Mount Hygiene, where their son, James Kennedy Parker, served as the first principal.
Daniel was also an author. He published a work on Restorationism in 1844 and completed an autobiography in 1845. In 1846, he returned east to visit his birthplace in Newburyport.
Family Life
Daniel Parker and Priscilla Mulloy had eight children:
- James Kennedy Parker (1817–1894)
- Susanna Everts Parker (1819–1890)
- William Tell Parker (1821–1876)
- Charles Coleman Parker (1823–1906)
- Daniel Mulloy Parker (1825–1878)
- Mason Doane Parker (1828–1865)
- Eben Armstrong Parker (1831–1898)
- Mary Priscilla Parker (1837–1880)
Siblings
Daniel Parker was one of eleven children. His siblings included:
- Elizabeth Warner Parker (1773–1850)
- William Parker (1775–1855)
- Sally Parker (1777–1846)
- John Parker (1779–1849)
- Polly Parker (1783–?)
- Nancy Parker (1785–1861)
- Susanna Parker (1787–1815)
- Fanny Parker (1789–?)
- Ebenezer Parker (1792–1873)
- Clarissa Parker (1795–1817)
Later Years and Legacy
Daniel Parker died on March 22, 1861, in Clermont County, Ohio, at the age of 79.
His life reflects the spirit of early American enterprise, religious reform, and frontier settlement. Through his work as an inventor, minister, educator, and author, he helped shape both the intellectual and community life of his region during a formative period in the nation’s history.
