Early Life and Entrance To The Navy
He was born in New York City, the son of Commodore Foxhall A. Parker, Sr. and Sarah Jay Bogardus (b. 1794), daughter of Robert Bogardus (1771–1841). Commodore Foxhall A. Parker, Jr. was his brother.
William H. Parker became a United States Navy midshipman at the early age of 15, recalling in his biography that he had held his father's hand while being escorted to his first ship.
Parker's appointment date as a Midshipman was on October 19, 1841, just after his 15th birthday. His first assignment was to the receiving ship USS North Carolina, and he reported on board October 27 when the ship was moored at New York City.
Read more about this topic: William Harwar Parker
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