I have been home for about almost two weeks now and I am actually preparing to leave soon. In the next few weeks, I will be traveling to Jackson, Mississippi to do research on Rachel Flowers’ sister, Hilda Clifford Flowers Wilson. Now, that I am home, I am reunited with my research again and must reeducate myself on this family before I leave again. I will continue the Morgan series another day, but right now I will revert my focus back on the Flowers.

I honestly don’t remember where I last left off with the family, but given the fact I have new followers it will be nice to brush up on some Flowers family history. We shall go through the traditional Who? What? When? Where? Why? and How? Perhaps four out of the six is fair enough.

Who? The Flowers is quite a large family. The main individuals within the family I am researching include Rachel Flowers, Hilda Clifford Flowers Wilson, Vincent Allen Flowers, Harry F. Flowers, Geraldine Wilson, Gladys Flowers Stevenson, and Henry Sams Junior. So that is seven out of forty known family members.

What? The accomplishment of this family dates back to the Civil War with Harry F. Flowers work as a sergeant within the 21st United States Colored Infantry. Still waiting on pension records from D.C.. A little upset because I put in a request to bypass the various privacy acts in September and they started processing it in January. I needed it for a class paper last year. Oh well. It is fascinating to discover how nearly every member of this family played a role in events that have and will forever shape race relations in America from sports, to the integration of the military, the emergence of the black middle class, and the Civil Rights Movement.

Where? The family has roots in Florida, North Carolina, Mississippi, and Pennsylvania.

Why? This project all started when I began to research Rachel Flowers, the first African American student to attend my college. From there it became this huge project and honestly I have no idea where it is going to end or even when, but whatever I can do to make her story known I will.

Lets continue this quick Flowers Family History 101. Now, you might be wondering who is Hilda Flowers. Hilda is the youngest child born to Harry and Nancy Flowers on April 8, 1910 according to her SSDI. She was considered by the Philadelphia Tribune to be the most popular child within the Flowers’ set, I guess you could sa. After her husband death, Hilda began to work with the SNCC office as a secretary in Philadelphia as well as working with the Philadelphia Tutorial Project. Her daughter, Geraldine, founded the Mississippi Institute for Early Childhood Education shortly after moving to the Mississippi Delta. Geraldine left Mississippi in 1966 with her mother moving down to the area to fill her daughter’s shoes working with the Poor People’s Corporation, Friends of Children of Mississippi, and the Mississippi Institute for Early Childhood Education. She also had a small business called Clifford’s House of Gifts.

Basically, I have less than a week to find as much information as possible on Hilda’s life in the Mississippi including background information about these organizations. Let’s just say it is going to be a busy week.

Until the next post.

Christina