Dennis B. Parker is one of the enterprising agriculturists of Washington County and a representative of a pioneer family whose activities in the cultivation of the soil have promoted the development of their section of the state. He was born on the old homestead, situated two and a half miles southwest of Copan, in Washington County, which is now the property of his stepmother, Mrs. Laura Parker. His mother died during his infancy. His father, Job B. Parker, was a member of the Delaware tribe of Indians. He became a pioneer agriculturist of Indian Territory and passed away in 1907. In his family were four children: Charley F., who is forty-seven years of age and resides in Copan; James, who is deceased; Dennis B., of this review; and Susie, who has also passed away.
In the acquirement of an education Dennis B. Parker attended the district schools and the public schools of Vinita, Oklahoma. He has devoted his life to agricultural pursuits and is now the owner of a well improved and highly cultivated ranch of fifty acres, which is separated from the home farm on the south by the cross section line. The latter place contains eighty acres and the residence stands upon a hill, in the midst of a fine grove of trees, and commands a fine view of the valley. Mr. Parker is operating both tracts, specializing in the raising of corn and oats, of which he gathers abundant crops. His land is rich and productive, owing to the care and labor which he bestows upon it, and his methods of farming are both practical and progressive, bringing to him a gratifying measure of success. Oil has been discovered on the home farm and the property is a valuable one.
Mr. Parker has been married twice. In 1899 he wedded Miss Lena Wheeler and they became the parents of three children: Geneva Blanche, twenty years of age; Edward Job, seventeen years of age; and Leona M., sixteen years of age. For his second wife he chose Ora Goodman, whom he married in 1913. She is of Cherokee descent and owns one hundred acres of land on Cotton creek, seven and a half miles northeast of Copan, on which there is a good residence. She is operating this place but lives on the old homestead with Mr. Parker. Energy, perseverance and thrift have been essential factors in the attainment of his present prosperity and he enjoys the esteem of many friends, being recognized as one of the, leading farmers of his part of the state.