Marion Parker
| Marion Parker | |
|---|---|
| Born |
October 11, 1915 Sebastian County, Arkansas |
| Died |
December 17, 1927 (aged 12) Los Angeles, California, United States |
| Cause of death | Homicide by strangulation |
| Nationality | American |
| Citizenship | United States |
| Occupation | Student |
| Known for | Murder victim, song inspiration |
Marion Parker (October 11, 1915 – December 17, 1927) was the 12-year-old daughter of Perry Parker, a prominent banker in Los Angeles. She had a twin sister named Marjorie. On December 15, 1927, Marion was abducted from her school and later killed by William Edward Hickman (February 1, 1908 – October 19, 1928), who called himself "The Fox." Her murder has since become the subject of folk songs.
The Los Angeles Times referred to this as "the most horrible crime of the 1920s."
Songs and some reports about Marion misspell her name as "Marian."
William Edward Hickman was born in Sebastian County, Arkansas, the fourth of five children (and the youngest son) of William Thomas Hickman and his wife Eva (Buck) Hickman, who separated sometime before 1928. In that year, his father was living at El Paso, Texas, while his mother and sister lived in Kansas City, Missouri.
Hickman abducted Marion from Mount Vernon Junior High School in the Lafayette Square section of Los Angeles. He had told the school's registrar, Mary Holt, that Perry Parker had been seriously injured in an accident and wished to see his daughter. Hickman was posing as an employee of the bank where Perry Parker worked. He did not know that Marion had a twin sister and he did not know either twin's name. Nonetheless, one of the twins (Marion) was turned over to him. Holt said during Hickman's trial that she "never would have let Marion go but for the apparent sincerity and disarming manner of the man."
The next day Hickman sent the first of three ransom notes to the Parker home, demanding $1,500 in $20 gold certificates. All his communications over the next few days were signed with names such as "Fate," "Death," and "The Fox."
A first attempt to deliver the ransom failed when Hickman saw police in the area. Further communications from Hickman set up a new meeting for delivering the ransom money. This was at the corner of West 5th Street and South Manhattan Place in Los Angeles. Parker arrived there alone with the ransom money. He handed over the money to a young man who was waiting for him in a parked car. When he gave the money to Hickman, he was able to see his daughter sitting in the passenger seat next to him. The girl was concealed up to her neck by clothing and was apparently unable to move.
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