John Parkin was the leader of an 1820 Settler Party which arrived aboard the Weymouth on the 15th May 1820. A carpenter and wheelwright by training, John Parkin resided at Lower North Street, Exeter, Devon.
Shortly after settling at the area designated for the Devon party at Kariega, John Parkin relocated his family to Port Elizabeth where he acquired a huge farm, eponymously known as the Baaken’s River Farm. By the time of his death in 1856, the Parkins were one of the wealthiest families in town.
Main picture: John Parkin of Baakens River Farm
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