Aaron Parks, BiographyPorter County biographical sketches . . . .
Transcribed biography of Aaron Parks
AARON PARKS was born in Erie County, Ohio, June 17, 1833, and is a son of E. W. Parks, a native of Vermont, a grandson of Aaron parks, and his great-grandfather was a native of Ireland, and came to America previous to the war of the Revolution. He served in this war, as did his grandfather, the former dying in the defense of his adopted country. The grandfather, Aaron Parks, lived to the age of one hundred and two years, and died in Vermont. E. W. Parks, was a carpenter by trade, but also farmed. He was twice married; first to a Miss Olds, who died leaving him a family of four children, three of whom yet live. His second wife, the mother of Aaron Parks, of Valparaiso, was Mrs. Mary (Gilbreath) Bear, a widowed lady with two children, only one yet living. To her union with Mr. Parks there were born five children, only two, Aaron and a sister, yet living. The mother died in 1844, and the father went to Lenawee County, Mich., where he died in 1848. Aaron Parks lived with his father until his death, then went to live with a half-sister in Berrien County, Mich., but at the age of eighteen, went to Niles, Mich., to learn the gunsmith trade with William Van Belar, remaining with him three years. He then went to Michigan City, where for about a year he worked at his trade. In 1852, he came to Indiana, and for the first two years was in La Porte, working at gunsmithing. He then came to Valparaiso with but very little more than his tools, but has accumulated some property and a home. He was married, June 1, 1856, to Jane Cook, and to them have been born five children - Alice E., Gilbert (dead), Emery (dead), Samuel A. and Gordie (dead). Mr. Parks at one time held the position of one of the "City Fathers" of Valparaiso. He is a Republican, and is the present Township Trustee of Centre Township. In 1864, he entered the Government service for seven months, and was on detached duty as Orderly at Camp Carrington. He is at present working at his trade, and in addition does a general repairing business. He and wife are members of the Methodist Episcopal Church.
Source: Goodspeed, Weston A., and Charles Blanchard. 1882. Counties of Porter and Lake, Indiana: Historical and Biographical, Illustrated. Chicago, Illinois: F. A. Battey & Company. 771 p.
Page(s) in Source: 266
This biography has been transcribed exactly as it was originally published in the source. Please note that we do not provide photocopies or digital scans of biographies appearing on this website.
Biography transcribed by Steven R. Shook