Final answer:
John Parker is a name that could be attributed to several historical figures, including a Captain in the American Revolutionary War and possibly a convict from Philadelphia in 1721. The provided references do not shed light on the specific John Parker in question.
Step-by-step explanation:
John Parker may refer to a number of historical figures. Notably, John Parker was a Captain during the American Revolutionary War, famously associated with the Battle of Lexington and Concord on April 19, 1775. It's known that Parker commanded the local militia and played a crucial role at the start of the conflict. However, the references provided do not specifically mention this individual, thus it is difficult to verify if this is the same John Parker in question without additional context.
Another historical context leads us to a possible convict named John Parker who could be confused with a man named John Palmer, mentioned in a 1721 issue of the American Mercury. Here, Parker or Palmer is described as having escaped from the 'Common Goal of Philadelphia' that same year, but again, the reference may not necessarily align precisely with the individual in query.
Turning to the references given, Christopher Marlowe: Poet & Spy by Park Honan is an academic biography and unlikely to discuss John Parker, unless he had some relation to Marlowe. Additionally, Global Crisis: War, Climate Change, and Catastrophe in the Seventeenth Century by Geoffrey Parker is a historical analysis of the seventeenth century's global challenges and unless John Parker played a role here, this reference may also not pertain to the question asked.