Richard E. Parker

Richard Elliot Parker (December 27, 1783– September 10, 1840) was born at Rock Spring, Westmoreland County, Virginia, son of Captain William Harwar and Mary (Sturman) Parker, and grandson of Judge Richard and Elizabeth (Beale) Parker. He studied law at Lawfield, Virginia, under his grandfather, Judge Richard Parker. After being admitted to the bar, he practiced in Westmoreland, his native county, which he represented in the Virginia House of Delegates. During the War of 18l2, he served as Lieutenant Colonel in the Thirty-fifth Virginia Regiment Militia and was wounded in the battle of the White House on September 16, 1814. He then returned to private practice and was elected to the general court on July 26, 1817. On December 12, 1836, Judge Parker was elected United States Senator from Virginia as a Jacksonian to fill the vacancy caused by the resignation of Benjamin W. Leigh, but resigned March 4, 1837, to accept a seat on the Court of Appeals. He refused the Cabinet office of Attorney General offered him by President Van Buren. He died on his estate, ‘Soldier’s Retreat,’ near Snickersville (now Bluemont, Loudoun County), Va., September 10, 1840 and was buried in the family cemetery near Warsaw, Richmond County, Va.

External links

* [http://bioguide.congress.gov/scripts/biodisplay.pl?index=P000069 biographic sketch at U.S. Congress website]