He was born in March 1875 in London, England, to George Parks and Eliza Ann Barrington. He had a brother, Frederick Parks, who would go on to win a bronze medal in the Olympics in 1908. Around 1896 he married Ada Sarah Waller in London and they had the following children: Maud Lilian Parks (1897–1983), Francis George Parks (1898–?); Rose Gladys Parks (1900–?), Ivy Mary Parks (1904–?), and Olive Eva Parks (1907–1991). He was the ABA Heavyweight Champion in 1899, 1901, 1902, 1905 and 1906.