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Oakwood Cemetery

Born:  October 17, 1891 at Monroe, NC

Entered Service in the US Army from Monroe, NC

Earned The Medal of Honor During World War I For heroism July 18 & 19, 1918 at Soissons, France

During the attack on Soissons two Infantry battalions were merged and established a frontline position. In so doing, a gap was left between the right flank of the French 153d Division and the left flank of the 28th Infantry, exposing the left flank to enemy machineguns in a rock quarry on high ground. Second Lieutenant Parker ordered his depleted platoon to follow him in an attack upon the strong point. Meeting a disorganized group of French Colonials, he persuaded them to join his platoon. They followed him through enemy fire to the crest of the hill, and rushing forward, took the quarry capturing six machineguns and 40 prisoners. The next day when the assault continued, Lieutenant Parker was in command of the merged battalions. Although wounded in the foot, he refused to be evacuated and continued to lead his command until the objective was reached. Seeing that the assault battalion was subjected to heavy enfilade fire due to a gap between it and the French on its left, he led his battalion through heavy fire and closed the gap, remaining in command until the newly established lines were thoroughly consolidated. In supervising this Lieutenant Parker had to crawl on his hands and knees on account of his painful wound.