Parker, Isaac Charles

Born October 15, 1838, near Barnesville, OH
Died November 17, 1896, in Fort Smith, AR

Federal Judicial Service:
Judge, U.S. District Court for the Western District of Arkansas
Nominated by Ulysses Grant on March 18, 1875, to a seat vacated by William Story. Confirmed by the Senate on March 19, 1875, and received commission on March 19, 1875. Service terminated on November 17, 1896, due to death.

Education:
Read law, 1859

Professional Career:

Private practice, St. Joseph, Missouri, 1859-1861
U.S. Army, 1861-1864
City attorney, St. Joseph, Missouri, 1862-1864
Circuit attorney, Ninth Judicial Circuit, Missouri, 1864-1867
Judge, Circuit Court of Missouri, Ninth Judicial Circuit, 1868-1870
U.S. representative from Missouri, 1871-1875
Republican candidate for U.S. Senate from Missouri, 1874
School board president, Fort Smith, Arkansas

Bibliography

Ball, Larry D. "Before the Hanging Judge: The Origins of the United States District Court for the Western District of Arkansas." Arkansas Historical Quarterly 49 (1990): 199-213.

Brodhead, Michael J., Isaac C. Parker: Federal Justice on the Frontier. Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, 2003.

Carter, Kent. "Hanging Judge Parker and the Gunfight at Alexander's Store: Opportunities for Research in the Records of the U.S. Court at Fort Smith." Chronicles of Oklahoma 72 (1994-95): 440-55.

Croy, Homer. He Hanged Them High: An Authentic Account of the Fanatical Judge who Hanged Eighty-Eight Men. Garden City, N.Y.: Permabooks, 1954.

Harrington, Fred Harvey. Hanging Judge. Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, 1996.

Kelton, Elmer. Hanging Judge. Thorndike, Me.: G.K. Hall, 1999.

Miller, John E. "Isaac Charles Parker." Arkansas Historical Quarterly 31 (1972): 57-74.

Moore, Lonnie W. Gates of Hell: The Wrath of Judge Isaac Parker. Oroville, Calif.: L.W. Moore, 1998.

Stolberg, Mary Margaret. "The Evolution of Frontier Justice: The Case of Judge Isaac Parker." Prologue 20 (1988): 7-23.

Stolberg, Mary Margaret. "Politician, Populist, Reformer: A Reexamination of 'Hanging Judge' Isaac C. Parker." Arkansas Historical Quarterly 47 (1988): 3-28.

Tuller, Roger H. "Let No Guilty Man Escape": A Judicial Biography of "Hanging Judge" Isaac C. Parker. Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, 2001.

Warner, Fred B. "The Hanging Judge Once More Before the Bar." Papers of the Bibliographical Society of America 70 (1976): 89-96.

Manuscript Collections

National Archives and Records Administration
College Park, Md.
Select Letters and Related Documents from the Files of the Department of Justice Concerning Judge Isaac C. Parker, 1875-1896.
Record Group 60 (publication number: M-2015); 1 microfilm reel; finding aid; correspondence.

Federal Judicial Center

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Parker, Isaac Charles