The Autobiography of John Parker

John Parker: Excerpts from the Autobiography

Introduction

A few notes about the Introduction:

1) The introduction to "His Promised Land" leaves out pages three and four. In the manuscript folder in the Special Collections at Duke, page three was out of order and apparently was overlooked. Clearly, however, Gregg intended for it to be included in the final work. It represents a continuation of the list of Ripley abolitionists, a reference to the Eliza legend, and gives a much better lead in to the autobiography than pages one and two alone.

2) Gregg clearly notes in the introductory paragraph that he "sat up all night" with Parker taking notes "on which this story is based." This raises an important question: First, is this a "story," based on fact but with much embellishment? Or is it very close to what Parker's account must have been? The fact that Gregg may have spent only one night hearing Parker adds credence to the former hypothesis.

3) The numbers at the top of page one (cut off somewhat during the scanning process) offer us a glimpse at Gregg's mathematical ability. He is attempting to find out how old Parker was in 1845, and begins by subtracting 45 from 27. Realizing this is wrong, he switches the numbers and arrives at the proper solution, 18.

4) In the margin at the top of page two, Gregg has scribbled a line he later includes verbatim on page three. He attributes this to "one of their contemporary writers."

Page One

This is the story of John Parker of Ripley, Ohio. He was a mulatto with a white man's brain and imagination. I knew him as a boy, as the man who was afraid to walk on the sidewalk. Winter and summer, rain or shine, he invariably walked in the middle of the street. The reason he did, was Ripley was an old town with many narrow alleys, out of which enemies could leap at him unawares. This habit he formed when there was a reward on his head, dead or alive. A courageous man, even in his old age, he was quick with his fists, a knife, or a pistol. I sat all night with him taking and compiling the notes on which this story is based. He was a man who rarely talked, never bragged. Having made some reputation as a newspaper man, I returned to my old home town, just to talk to John Parker. I knew he had had a life of adventure, but never imagined such an interesting one as he unfolded to me and my banker friend, Frank A. Stivers, an old friend of Parker's, and the leading banker of Ripley.

John Parker was born in Norwalk, Virginia, in 1827. He was only eight years old when he was sold and went to Richmond, Virginia, to live. He was chained to an old man, who was later whipped to death. The experience set the boy on fire with hatred and the desire to gain his freedom. Just four months later, he was chained to a gang of 400 slaves. It was customary at the time to sell the slaves as they passed through the country. Parker walked to the end of the slave trail at Mobile, Alabama. When he was 14, he entered into a contract with a widow, Mrs. Ryder of Mobile. If she would buy his freedom for $1,800, he would pay her back on a weekly installment plan of $10 per week with interest. By this time he had made himself so disagreeable to his old master, he was glad to get rid of Parker at any price. It was 1845 before he had paid Mrs. Ryder and gained his freedom.

[Full size image of this page]

[Double size image of this page]

Page Two

[At the top:] The doctrine of abolition were very unpopular in the county, and those who maintained this doctrine were subjected to much odium and abuse

He was now 18, free and anxious to go north as his life had been spent as a workman in an iron foundry. He had met a free man in New Orleans who told him of the iron foundries in New Albany, Indiana. So his pass out of Mobile read New Albany, Indiana. He was only there a short time when he went to Cincinnati, thence to Ripley, Ohio, where he entered into one of the most adventurous careers of any slave runner along the entire border. He devoted his life to forays in Kentucky, to scouting on both sides of the Ohio river, to taking care of the helpless slaves who found their way to the Ohio and could not get across, to actual fighting for them as against their pursuing masters. Owing to the stringent antislavery laws and the fugitive slave law, Parker never was to tell his adventures. He had built up a profitable iron foundry business. He had patented a clod smashing machine which came in general use. All of his property would hav been confiscated and he would have been jailed had the slave owners been able to cath him. So it behooved Parker to move with caution and silence. These dangers did not hold him back. Almost nightly he was on the lookout for his fugitive brothers.

John Parker found kindred spirits in a group of white men, all Scotch Presbyterians, who had devoted their lives and property toward aiding and abetting the runaway slaves. It was a peculiar and friendly environment, to a degree, owing to the fact that then town of Ripley stood in the heart of the Virginia Military District of Ohio. This district lat between the mouths of the Scioto River on the east and the Little Miami River on the west. It had been set apart by the U.S. government for the soldiers of the Revolution of the line who were unable to locate their bounty of wild lands in the valleys of the Tennessee or the Cumberland of in the wild lands of Kentucky. As the Ordinance of 1787 forbid slavery north of the Ohio river, this Virginia Military District of Ohio was only settled by those Virginia planters who wished to free their slaves, or to men who did not wish own slaves. Two large free camps were established in the District to which southern planters would send their slaves to be freed, without their having to come with them. Then there were gathered in the District antislavery men from North and South Carolina, Tennessee, Kentucky, Pennsylvania and Virginia. The most prominent of these was Dr. Alexander Campbell, a native of Greenbrier County, Virginia. The first abolitionist of Ohio, Senator from Ohio; when the British burned Washington, he rode away back to Ohio. There was the Reverend John Rankin, a native of Tennessee, who according to Henry Ward Beecher brought on the Civil War.

[Full size image of this page]

[Double size image of this page]

Page Three

There was Rev James Gilliard of North Carolina, who was dismissed from the N.C. presbytry for his anti-slavery activity, settled -on Red Oak- near Ripley in 1805. Ike Collins, the coffin maker, who hid runaways in -empty- his coffins. William Collins, who hid runaways in his hay loft. Dr. Be[], who served the runaways and their masters. Then Aunt Katy McCague, who-s- shifted a group of slaves in her house, while she -kept their- entertained masters. As a boy I remember Aunt Kitty, an aged lady sitting quietly on her stoop, [] away a gentle soul if their ever was one.

[Gregg drew an arrow on the manuscript here indicating for this paragraph to be read after the next.] This group were abolitionists, all were -Sct- Scotch Presbyterians, round heads of Cromwells, -confronting- [] their [] against the cavaliers from England to the banks of the Ohio. In the beginning they were the leaders of their community, -but- in later years when Ripley became the -slave- center of the flat boat industry, when [] merchants boats were passing their way though all the bayous and rivers of the south, there came an influx of Southern workers and farmers plus the rich men who lived off feeding the slaves, which completely submerged this group of abolitionists. In the language of one of the contemporary writers: "The doctrine of abolition were very unpopular in the [country] and those who maintained this doctrine were subject to much odium and abuse." As a matter of fact the settlers -from the south- in favor of slavery soon became so numerous that the underground railroad was first established as the only avenue through which the runaways could excape to Canada. -The [] of this [] trail- The Underground Railroad was first established and its name given by these early Ohio abolitionists.

[Gregg indicates this paragraph is to be read before the paragraph above.] It was at Ripley that Eliza of Uncle Tom's Cabin crossed on the ice. She found refuge in the home of Rev John Rankin, located on the top of a high hill, with its lighted lamp in the window as a beacon light for the runaways. He it was who told the story [] to Harriet Beecher Stowe, who was then living in Cincinnati. Mrs. Stowe acknowledged the [] of the incident in her Key to Uncle Tom's Cabin.

-With this background- Into this [co...] of abolitionists John Parker, fitted like and old shoe. -From- From his first contact with this group Parker began his campaign againt slavery, out of which he had come, which he waged with intensity and bitterness until -the Civ- it was abolished by the Civil war. -He literally- In his hatred of the cause of his [] sufferings, he literally robbed the Kentucky planters of their slaves, kept close watch -along- along the river, every night he was on patrol, ready to lead and fight for his helpless

[Full size image of this page]

[Double size image of this page]

Page Four

brethren. A fearless man, quick witted, and resourceful time and again he went into the county of the "Enemy," as he designated it, read the posters for his reward captured dead or alive, then went on to round up his runaways, and []them to Canada over the [] well oiled and operated Underground Railroad.

[Full size image of this page]

[Double size image of this page]

Chapter One, Page One

[Full size image of this page]

[Double size image of this page]

Back to John Parker Autobiography Table of Contents

A project of The Digital Scriptorium, Special Collections Library, Duke University.