Old Fort Parker revisited: Central Texas history embraced near Mexia

By MINDY POEHL | Central Texas Edition

Take a step back to 1836 as you visit Old Fort Parker and climb the stairs in the blockhouses, explore the cabins and peer out of lookout holes. Located between Groesbeck and Mexia, Old Fort Parker is the place where a band of Cherokee Indians killed five pioneers and captured Cynthia Ann Parker. Photo by Mindy Poehl

August 19, 2004 - Nestled one mile back from any main streets, a dense forest of trees follows the curves of the long, winding road that leads to Old Fort Parker.

Originally established in 1833, Old Fort Parker is the historic site that honors the Parker family and other pioneers who paid a high price to settle Texas. Today, a replica of the fort is located in the same place as the original, between Groesbeck and Mexia.

In 1833, the Parker family, along with others from their community of Crawford County, Illinois, came to Texas. Daniel Parker, who was a loyal theologian, gained permission to settle in Texas. Daniel and his followers, who formed the Predestinarian Baptist Church, left Illinois in July of 1833 in ox drawn wagons, where they settled near the present city of Elkhart. Other members of the group settled further west, near the Navasota River.

Jennifer Lemmon, a volunteer at the fort, poses in front of a picture of Quanah Parker. Photo by Mindy Poehl

It wasn't until December of 1833, when Elder John Parker and his three sons, Silas, James and Benjamin, began clearing land and constructing "Parker's Fort." Built near the fresh water Parker Spring, the fort is surrounded by 12-foot walls made out of split cedar. Two rows of cabins are built against the walls and two stockade blockhouses stand in opposing corners.

"It was used as a civilian fort, for the people that came here on a Mexican land grant," said Jennifer Lemmon, a volunteer at Old Fort Parker. "The stockade was built to protect them from Indians because this was before Texas was a state."

The main entrance lies at the stockade-blockhouse fortress, which is a two-story building that acted as a lookout. Square blocks are cut out of the fence and the blockhouses, so ammunition could be shot out from many areas of the fort.

"The fort provided protection for the settlers, but one day they left the gates to the fort opened and while the men were out farming, a band of Indians came into the fort," Lemmon said. "Benjamin Parker went out to see what they wanted and they said all they wanted was food and water. When he went back out to bring them what they asked for, the Indians killed him."

On that very day, May 19, 1836, the Comanche Indians attacked the entire fort, killing five settlers and capturing five more. The remaining 21 survivors split into two groups and traveled toward the present city of Palestine.

One of the most famous captives was Cynthia Ann Parker. Only nine years old when she was captured by the Indians, Cynthia was adopted by a childless couple within the Pahauka band of Comanches. She adapted to the Comanche tribe and embraced their language and customs.

"When Cynthia was 17, she married warrior Peta Nacona and she lived with the Indians for 24 years before she was rescued by the Texas Rangers," explained Lemmon.

Peta and Cynthia's son, Quanah Parker, grew up to be the last Comanche chief. Following in his father's footstep's, Quanah became a wise warrior and chief. He knew that "white men" were deceptive and he refused to accept the 1867 Treat of Medicine Lodge, which confined the Southern Plains Indians to a reservation. He fought to protect the Comanche Territory, long after most of the Comanches went to the reservation. On June 2, 1875, Quanah finally moved his people to a reservation because they no longer had food or horses.

"Quanah was the last Comanche chief because the only way to become a chief was through war," Lemmon said. "When Quanah decided to move onto an Indian reservation to save his tribe, tribes no longer had chiefs. They had elected officials who were called chairmen."

Old Fort Parker was reconstructed in 1936 and rebuilt again in 1967, however the fort was built as closely to the original as possible, because drawings of the original fort were left behind, Lemmon said.

"This fort is important for the Comanche Indians as well as the white people," Lemmon said. "It's a wonderful site and it's the best thing we've got going in this county that brings tourists."

Old Fort Parker hosts events such as pioneer days for boy and girl scouts, turkey shoots, trail rides and gunslinger re-enactments. Behind the visitor's center is Mary Rodger's Music Room, which is a bed and bath. Two other buildings, which are the Prisoner of War Barracks, have different rooms and serve as a small hotel on the property. Old Fort Parker is also embarking on an annual outdoor drama project to help keep preserving the historical site.