My Genealogy Hound

R. H. Parker is a member of the general mercantile firm of Sypert, Parker & Co., which connection was established in 1888, when Mr. Parker bought out Mr. Sypert’s senior partner. Mr. Parker was born in the immediate vicinity of Nashville, in January, 1850, being the fourth in a family of six children born to Thomas G. and Charlotte (Perkins) Parker, natives of North Carolina and Mississippi, respectively. The father came to Arkansas in 1835, and settled near Nashville, where he purchased and entered 320 acres of land, which tract was located one-half mile south of the town. This he improved and made into a fine farm, and here he passed from the scene of his usefulness in November, 1878. He had been for many years a member of the Missionary Baptist Church, having been an Episcopalian prior to that time, and throughout his long and useful career he was an earnest worker for the cause of Christianity. His father was a planter, and lived and died in North Carolina. The maternal grandfather, Isaac C. Perkins, was also born in North Carolina, but became an early emigrant to Mississippi, and later came to Arkansas. He was for a long time a minister of the Missionary Baptist Church in Southwest Arkansas, and assisted in the organization of many churches throughout this section. He was the original owner of most of the land on which the town of Nashville now stands, and died in 1852, being among the best known of Arkansas' early pioneers. The immediate subject of this sketch was educated in Nashville, and at the age of sixteen years he assumed the management of his father's business and estate, and continued in this capacity until the latter's death. In the fall of 1878 he began clerking in the establishment belonging to George M. Clark, remaining with him for about seven years, and during this time he also tilled the soil. In 1888 he became interested in his present business, and he and his partners own a large storehouse, 24x142 feet, their stock of goods invoicing at $6,000, and their sales amounting to $25,000 per annum. They keep an excellent line of hardware and agricultural implements, as well as dry goods, groceries, etc., and besides his interest in this property, Mr. Parker owns 140 acres of his father’s old estate, seventy-five acres of which are under cultivation. His residence property in Nashville is valuable, and his house, which was erected in 1888, is substantial and handsome. He was married in 1870 to Miss V. R. Anderson, a native of Mississippi, and a daughter of O. P. Anderson, who settled near Nashville, and died in 1886. They have two children: Georgia Othella and Charlotte. Mr. Parker and his wife are members of the Missionary Baptist Church, and he belongs to the Masonic fraternity, Pleasant Valley Lodge No. 30. He is a gentleman of sterling business worth, and patrons calling on him receive courteous attention, and, as he is reliable and enterprising, he will maintain the high reputation he has made.