![]() Parker was young, so she adapted quickly to her new environment, perhaps first out of survival and then out of devotion. She was abused and treated like a slave until she was given to a couple who raised her as their own child. As a new Comanche, Parker’s life was difficult. Within six years, all the captives had been ransomed and returned to their families except Parker, but that was her choice. Parker, her younger brother, a baby and two women were captured by Comanche. But Uncle Benjamin, Parker’s father, grandfather and two other men were killed. Those five minutes of diplomacy allowed most of them to flee into the wilderness. Parker’s uncle, Benjamin, tried to negotiate with the attackers to buy time for the women and children to escape. One Indian approached with a white flag accompanied by enough others to indicate that this was a ruse. In 1836, when Parker was nine years old, several hundred members of the Caddo, Comanche and Kiowa tribes attacked the fort. Treaties were signed by the homesteaders and many neighboring chiefs leading to a peaceful coexistence, for a while. In 1834, Cynthia’s uncle, Daniel Parker, led the effort to build Fort Parker in Mexia, Texas, between Dallas and Houston. WELCOME TO THE NEIGHBORHOOD The newly arrived settlers were well aware of the potential threat of the local Indians. Each head of household was awarded a “headright league” of over 4,000 acres, and the Parkers started calling Anderson County, Texas home. The purpose of the trip was the great American Dream: to apply for a land grant. ![]() Parker’s brother James was killed when one wagon lost a wheel, and he was hit in the chest by a piece of wood. ![]() It was a long journey and not without incident. The wagon train consisted of 31 families including Parker’s grandparents, uncles and aunts. He loaded his wife, five children and all their belongings into the wagons and headed south from Illinois to central Texas. In August of 1833, Cynthia Ann Parker’s father, Silas M. Cynthia Ann Parker After Being Returned to the Parker Family
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