Brigadier General Ely Parker retired after serving in Union Army in the American Civil War
When researching Blackbeard’s Lost Head, I had to resist getting sidetracked on stuff that had nothing to do with the story I was trying to write. But occasionally, I would stumble on something fascinating that I did not know, and it was worth the side trip.
One such find was the discovery of Ely Parker, a Tonawanda Seneca Indian (b. 1828) and a colonel during the American Civil War on the side of Lincoln’s army. He would eventually rise to the rank of brigadier general.
The man was considered a genius in his day. He was a lawyer and engineer who was instrumental in getting Northern troops across rivers and deep into Southern territory. General Grant, who commanded all Union troops, kept him close at his side as an advising officer. Though Parker downplayed it, some have suggested that Parker’s advice was largely responsible for winning several key battles in the Civil War.
Parker’s Indian name was Hasanowanda, translated as “The Reader.”
In addition to his engineering prowess, Parker has gone down in history as instrumental in authoring the documents of surrender that ended the Civil War. Grant originally had a white officer draw up the document, but the man became paralyzed by panic attacks over the gravity of the assignment. So, Colonel Parker grabbed the paper and pen and wrote it himself. Tell me that’s not ironic as hell. Here’s a Native man (not granted full citizenship) explaining how white people will end their horrific bloody war. That’s right, the surrender documents are in Parker’s handwriting, the written conditions a harmonious collaboration between Parker, Lincoln and Grant.
Parker put the surrender conditions together in record time. There would be no more slavery in America. All southern soldiers would be allowed to return home, and permitted to keep their horses and sidearms, provided they ceased fighting and surrendered their equipment.
Parker is seated on Grant’s right-hand side
It was Ely Parker, whose sage advice and legendary writing skills were instrumental in bringing the bloodiest war in American history to an end.
Later Parker wrote about the moment he handed the surrender document to Confederate General Robert E. Lee, commander of the losing side:
“(General Lee) stared at me for a moment. He extended his hand and said, ‘I am glad to see one real American here.’ I shook his hand and said, ‘We are all Americans here today.’
Parker became the first Native American to head the BIA during an agonizing time of Indian wars out west. Historians consider his time at the helm of the BIA to be one of the most important in history and give him credit for thwarting several campaigns that saved both the lives of Native people and US soldiers. In one failed attempt to avert disaster, Ely Parker did everything he could to warn Custer that he was about to get wiped out, but of course Custer refused to listen. “I did what I could to keep Indian and white people alive. I wish I could have done more.”
Parker died in 1895 and was buried with full military honors. His grave site is in in Buffalo, New York, but pick your times to visit. Ely Parker’s resting place is often closed for Veteran ceremonies and various Indigenous group memorials and celebrations.
