Chief Parker began his career in law enforcement as a member of the Night Watch in March of 1858.  He was one of thirty applicants for six positions, ultimately being chosen to serve for a term of three months. He was reelected several times; there are references to him as a member of the watch in November of 1859, among others.  Prior to serving on the Watch, he had been a lieutenant in a city militia unit called the Independent Guards, which has formed in 1855.
The position of Chief was not a full-time occupation, and he earned his living through the sale of food; there are a series of advertisements from him which stated “I am the only man in Raleigh that keeps Fresh Oysters by the measure, expressly for families, at $1.40 per gallon, four doors below the post office.”  He is first referred to as “Chief of Police” in December of 1865, although there was no election for city officials held until January 17, 1866, when he was elected to the post of Chief Constable, with G. L. Horton as Assistant Chief.  In addition, there were two Day Policemen appointed, I. N. Harward and M. C. Luter, as well as a Captain of the Night Watch, Caswell Pollard. The police force seemed to be growing.   A reference to William Parker as “Chief Constable” on January 3 indicates that he was likely acting Chief until the election was held.  Parker continues to be referred to both as “Chief Constable” and “Chief of Police” throughout 1866. During the second half of 1866, he is also referred to repeatedly as “Captain Parker,” possibly exclusively in one newspaper, Weekly Progress; the source of this rank is not clear.
Sometime between January and March, Chief Parker’s assistant, G. L. Horton, was replaced by M. C. Luter, who resigned from the position on March 2, 1866.  Another election was held on March 28, 1866, which re-elected Parker as Chief of Police.  John D. Thompson, who would later become chief, was elected as his assistant. 
William C. Parker opened up a restaurant, hotel, and bar, called Parker House, on Fayetteville Street in July of 1867. He seems to have left the police force for some period of time; in 1870, the federal census has his occupation as “Agent Land Co.,” presumably the agent for some kind of real estate or development group.  By the 1880s, he was back to listing his occupation as “policeman.”  From 1878 to 1881, he also served as Police Chief for the State Fair.  William Parker died suddenly of heart disease in September of 1882, one of the two oldest policemen in the state.  His obituary claims he had served as a policeman for twenty-two of his fifty-three years.



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