Fort Parker State Park

Fort Parker State Park is a Texas state park near Mexia. The city of Mexia and three local landowners donated the land creating the park in 1935. Fort Parker State Park, east of Waco, is rich in both nature and history. The park is the site of a Comanche Indian raid that took place in 1836. In the 1930s the Civilian Conservation Corps built several park structures that still stand today, including Fort Parker Lake, a popular fishing spot. The wooded park is a great place for hiking, camping and wildlife viewing.

Old Fort Parker
The Fort Parker massacre was an event in May 1836 in which members of the pioneer Parker family were killed in a raid by Native Americans. In this raid, a 9-year-old girl, Cynthia Ann Parker, was captured and spent most of the rest of her life with the Comanche, marrying a Chief, Peta Nocona, and giving birth to a son, Quanah Parker, who would become the last Chief of the Comanches. Her brother, John Richard Parker, who was also captured, was ransomed back after six years, but unable to adapt to white society, ran back to the Comanches.