Parker is my 1st cousin 4 times removed. We share a Greatest Grandfather.
The Mick family had moved to Manlius Illinois by March of 1855 where they bought 20 acres of land from John and Alice Mitchel.
On 10 September 1861 Parker joined the 39th Regiment of the Illinois Volunteer Infantry. He was mustered in Chicago on 11 October 1861 as a member of Company K. They were immediately ordered to St. Louis Missouri and by 29 October 1861 were Williamsport Maryland.
39th taken in the summer of 1863 Parker may be somewhere in the photo - photo from Jean Wilson
The 39th Regiment had settled in at Morris Island, South Carolina in the summer of 1863, by the end of July Parker was ill. He could not perform his duties during August and September. On 19 October 1863 he was granted a furlough for health reasons. Parker goes to St. Augustine Florida to what the Army called a Convalescent Camp. He spends all of November in the Hospital Convalescent Baracks. 23 November 1863 Parker dies. A Funeral Escort was arranged for 2 o'clock on 25 November 1863.
Fellow soldiers and Dr. Charles Clark had this to say about Parker. "He was an enthusiastic soldier - old fashioned, comical, full of fun and very popular with the men of his company."
