Ebenezer Parker (c. 1790-1862) was the son of Thomas Parker (1747-1806) and grandson of William Parker, Master Cutler in 1761. Ebenezer was listed in 1822 as a merchant in Little Sheffield, but he rarely featured in directories in the 1820s (perhaps because he was involved in the Holy silver plate enterprise, where his uncle, Ebenezer, had been a partner). After 1833, however, he appeared in directories as a merchant and table knife manufacturer at Little Sheffield. By 1849, he was based at Ecclesall Works, Rockingham Street, where he had warehouses, hearths, workshops, a steelhouse, and ten converting furnaces (Sheffield Independent, 21 February 1846).  During the 1850s, the firm was restyled ‘& Sons’, after Ebenezer’s sons Edward (1830-1865) and Alfred (1831-1895) joined the business. Another son, Stephen (1851-1887), was also involved in the family firm. By the 1860s, steel, saws, and files were sold by Ebenezer Parker & Sons, which had a Birmingham branch.

Ebenezer Parker died on 15 August 1862, aged 72, and was buried in Fulwood cemetery. He lived at Storths House in Fulwood and left under £16,000.  His son, Edward, died on 26 March 1865, aged 35. He left under £1,200 and was also buried in Fulwood. The business was now managed by Alfred, who told the Census in 1871 and 1881 that he employed about fifty men. Alfred described himself as a Scandinavian merchant and manufacturer of edge tools, files, and cutlery.

In 1883, Alfred retired and the stock and tools were auctioned (Sheffield Independent, 17 May 1883; 9 February 1884).  Alfred Parker, of Krageroe, Norway, died on 8 July 1895, leaving £34,814. Atkinson Bros acquired the trade mark as ‘a very prized and valuable asset’ (Sheffield Independent, 24 November 1889). When Atkinson’s issued a company prospectus in 1897, it referred to Parker’s as a company that had been ‘carried on with great and unvarying success, two, at least of the proprietors having made large fortunes’.  Atkinson’s continued to use the Parker name and its ‘3709’ mark (granted in 1841) and to list the company at Milton Works (Milton Street).  In the late twentieth century, Ebenezer Parker was still listed as a ‘name’ in directories at Britannia Works in Herries Road (where Atkinson’s was also listed). By then, the owner of these names was Hiram Wild Ltd.