Parker, Samuel, 1779-1866

Reverend Samuel Parker was born on April 23, 1779 in Ashfield, Massachusetts. After his ordination in 1812, Parker preached and taught for over twenty years in New York. In 1833, he volunteered for service under the American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions. Two years later, he and Dr. Marcus Whitman traveled to the Green River to determine the feasibility of an Indian mission for the Flathead and Nez Percé tribes. Whitman returned east, while Parker continued west and spent the winter of 1835-1836 at Fort Vancouver exploring the Willamette Valley and upper Columbia River for possible mission locations. Late in 1836, Rev. Parker returned to the east via the Sandwich Islands and Cape Horn.

From the description of Letters, 1834-1837. (Oregon Historical Society Research Library). WorldCat record id: 32315718

Samuel Parker, first Presbyterian missionary in Oregon, was born in Massachusetts in 1779. We was educated at Williams College and the Andover Theological Seminary and was ordained in 1812. He taught and preached in New York until 1833. He married his second wife, Jerusha, with whom he had three children in 1815. He answered a call for missionaries in 1834 and traveled to Oregon Country with Marcus Whitman in 1835. He scouted locations for missions in Oregon selected sites for the American Board of Foreign Missions. After informing the board of the sites, he was rejected for serving as a missionary himself because of his age. He died in Ithaca in 1866.

From the description of Correspondence (transcripts), 1835-1838. (Spokane Public Library). WorldCat record id: 747253467