What follows below is an article about the Pennsylvania gunsmith John K. Parks that Joanne Damm Rodgers contributed to Korns.org. The article was originally prepared for the Parkes Society newsletter.
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What follows below is an article about the Pennsylvania gunsmith John K. Parks that Joanne Damm Rodgers contributed to Korns.org. The article was originally prepared for the Parkes Society newsletter.
L. Dietle
John Parks and the War of 1812
At the turn of the 19th Century, many feared that our local history may be forgotten as the pioneers and their offspring passed on without passing on their stories. In Pennsylvania, JH Beers and Company published volumes of histories of counties, townships, cities, and boroughs. In addition to the histories, they also published biographies of local residents. How did a person earn his place into one of these books? It seems that they were prominent citizens, either in politics, business, or the church. I've heard that one could have a family member included if they paid a fee and supplied the information. Only admirable attributes were written and "fact checking" by the publisher is questionable, so we must proceed with caution.
How excited I was, when some 40 years ago, as I was beginning my research into my Parks family, to find one such biography! There was so much information on people, places, occupations, and events for me to explore. It served as a wonderful springboard for research. But "proceed with caution" I did. I was delighted to find everything proven true, verified by family records, tax records, maps, censuses, deeds. Everything except...
Thomas Parks was the subject of the biography, my second great-grandfather, 1827-1896. The article goes back two generations, which was a wonderful resource for me, as well as going ahead a generation, listing his children and spouses. Through this, I could find the branch where I fit in. But the problem was with information about his father, John K Parks.
John K Parks was born in Huntingdon County, Pennsylvania, at Burnt Cabin, 1784. He learned the gunsmith trade in Bedford, Pa, and made guns in Huntingdon County, then later, in 1847 when he moved to Clearfield County, PA. Quoting from Beers, "While a resident of Huntingdon County, the father of this family manufactured guns for the War of 1812, in which he participated, being on duty in Buffalo, New York." As a native of Niagara Falls, I clearly remembered my history that Buffalo did not fare well during this war, being burnt to the ground in retaliation for the Americans burning the Canadian village of Niagara (now Niagara-on-the-Lake). I doubted that my ancestor would be making guns in a burnt-out town, 330 miles from home. Or was he there during the attack?
Research at Huntingdon County Historical Center was helpful in verifying much of the information I found in this biography, but nothing about the War of 1812. Then I hit gold: I found, online, USGenWeb Archives, excerpts from the records of the Huntingdon Volunteers from "Historic Huntingdon 1709-1909".
I learned that Captain Robert Allison led his company on September 7, 1812, from Huntingdon, PA, to Niagara, via Petersburg, Spruce Creek, Bellefonte, Danville, Batavia, arriving in Buffalo on October 2, 1812, where he reported to Major General Hall. And listed on the roster, with 32 other privates, is John Parks. Excerpts from Captain Allison's diary is very interesting, reading in detail how these men walked 331 miles in 25 days, how they found food and clothing and where they stayed, as the weather grew less hospitable. If it hadn't been for the Beers biography, I would not have been sure that this John Parks was my ancestor, as DNA has proven that there were at least three different Parks families living in Huntingdon County during this time.
Now my interest is piquing. Normally my brain fogs when reading about military maneuvers but now it has become real. What happened when they got to Buffalo, a village with a population of about 400? I'm picturing John Parks setting up a mobile gun repair wagon, possibly near the local blacksmith shop. Was he "manufacturing" new guns, as the biography said, or keeping the guns they had in good working order? They were there from October 2 to November 29, 1812.
Next, my research turned to the detailed account of the war on the Niagara Frontier, by Lieutenant Colonel Richard V Barbuto. There are accounts of skirmishes and attempts to cross the Niagara River into Canada, but without much success. Many Pennsylvania Militiamen refused to cross the river, saying that they were sworn to protect the United States, not to invade another country.
On November 29, a General Council of War was declared to postpone the invasion of Canada.
Captain Allison's diary is not completely preserved, so we are missing details, but it seems likely that because of this declaration, the company returned home. We have his letter of resignation dated December 27, 1812, from Huntingdon, PA, one month after the declaration. Barbuto records that it was a year later, December 29, 1813, that the British and their native allies set fire to the entire village and killed and scalped many. Did our Pennsylvania militiamen, now safely home, ever hear about this attack?
Perhaps more will be discovered, as I am in contact with an historian at the Huntingdon County Historical Center, who is also interested in finding out more about this time period and Huntingdon's participation in the war. Hopefully diaries, letters, or newspaper articles will be found to shed more light.
I am grateful for the foresight of our ancestors to preserve some of our history in written form, and in my case, a very accurate biography, with no exceptions.
As an aside: While chatting with my nephew about his research into his mother's family (not mine), he relates that his ancestor was a teamster in Buffalo, who had to run for his life when attacked on December 29, 1813. He and his family were about to leave in the wagon, when he went back to rescue some livestock, losing his life in the attempt. His family got away. Perhaps his ancestor and mine had crossed paths during those two months.
John Parks LK=LO, matching LK=FT and LK=HS.
Joanne Damm Rodgers, October 2023
