Sir Abel Barker, 1st Baronet

Sir Abel Barker, 1st Baronet (c.1616 – 1679) was an English politician. He was Member of Parliament for Rutland and he was made a baronet in 1665.

Biography Barker was the son of Abel Barker and Elizabeth Wright. In 1637 he inherited the manor of Hambleton, Rutland, from his father and he prospered as a large-scale sheep-farmer; he rented land from Edward Harington and James Harington. During the English Civil War, Barker supported Parliament and he served on the Rutland county committee. In 1646 he was appointed High Sheriff of Rutland and he served as a justice of the peace for the county between 1647 and 1653. In 1656, he was elected as a Member of Parliament for Rutland in the Second Protectorate Parliament, representing the seat until 1658. In 1659 he served as commissioner for militia in Rutland. In 1679, he was again returned as the member for Rutland, but died before the Second Exclusion Parliament convened.