| 2. |  Harry Florence Flowers, II was born on 23 Feb 1844 in Putnam, Florida, USA (son of Harry Flowers, I and Mother Unknown Flowers); died on 7 Jul 1928 in Boiling Springs, Cumberland, Pennsylvania, USA; was buried in 201 South 30th street, Penbrook, Dauphin, Pennsylvania, USA. Other Events:
- Physical Description: Eyes: Black; Hair Black; Complexion Black; Height 5 ft. 4 1/2 in.
- Biography: “Harry Flowers,” Roots Of A Hidden Legacy
- Veteran: Civil War: Sargeant Co. F 21st Reg U.S.C. Infantry
- Name: Asa F. Flowers
- Name: Harry F Flowers
- Name: Harry Flowers
- Name: Harry Flowers
- Name: Morry Flowers
- Residence: Philadelphia, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
- Military: 1864, Florida, USA; Co. F 21st Reg U.S.C. Infantry. Muster Date: 17 Aug 1864 Muster Company: F Muster Regiment: U.S. Colored Troops 21st Infantry Muster Regiment Type: Infantry Muster Information: Enlisted Rank Change Date: 31 Aug 1865 Rank Change Rank: Corpl M
- Military Enlistment: 17 Jul 1864, Jacksonville, Duval, Florida, USA
- Military Muster: 17 Aug 1864, Hilton Head, Beaufort, South Carolina, USA
- Military Rank Change: 31 Aug 1865; Promoted to Corporal
- Military Rank Change: 1 Oct 1865; Promoted to Sergeant.
- Military Discharge: 25 Apr 1866; 22 Age: 22
- Residence: 1880, Precinct 6, Putnam, Florida, USA; Marital Status: Married; Relation to Head: Self
- Residence: 1887, 33 West State street, Jacksonville, Duval, Florida, USA
- Military Pension: 6 Jul 1896, Florida, USA; Unit: F. 21. U.S.C. Infantry Filing Date: 6 Jul 1897 Place Filed: Florida, USA Relation to Head: Soldier Roll number: 156
- Residence: 1920, Monroe, Cumberland, Pennsylvania, USA; Marital Status: Divorced Father's Birthplace: Georgia Mother's Birthplace: Florida Occupation: Carpenter; Industry: House; Home Owned; Home Mortgaged; Able to Read and Write.
- Residence: 1928, Boiling Springs, Cumberland, Pennsylvania, USA
Notes:
“I am 43 years old, a carpenter, residence and P.O. Address is at Mandarin, Duval County, Fla. I was 5th duty Sergt. of Co. A 21 Regt U.S.C.T. and served from the fall of 1865 [sic] to until the M.O. [muster out] of our Co. April 25/66. I first knew the dec’d, husband of cl’t in the service, when we got to Hilton Head S.C. I enlisted at Jacksonville, Fla…” January 7, 1891[1]
On July 17, 1864 in Jacksonville, Florida, former enslaved and freed blacks stood in the Union army’s enlistment line. Waiting, at a mere five feet and four inches, was a young eighteen year old former slave of Putnam County, Florida.[2] As Lieutenant George F. Hopper asked the young man for his name he replied Harry Florence Flowers. Harry was assigned to Company A and F of the 21st United States Colored Infantry (USCI), a garrison and fatigue unit composed of former slaves from South Carolina, Georgia, and Florida.[3] He was faced with his fair share of discrimination given lower wages than white soldiers and handed the shovel more times than weapons of war. Still, he pressed on. Although there would be no film showing their glory, one of the 21st USCI’s greatest achievements is being recognized as the first Union army to enter Charleston after the city’s surrender in 1865.[4]
By 1893, Harry relocated to Jacksonville, Florida where he worked as a carpenter. It was in Jacksonville where Harry met North Carolina native Nancy Sawyer. They married and welcomed the birth of their first child, Chauncey Sawyer Flowers in 1895. By 1910, Harry and Nancy had a total of eight children: Chauncey Sawyer (b. 1895), John Carrolis (b. 1898), Fred (b. 1899), Rachel Helen (b. 1900), Theodore G. (b. 1905), Vincent Allen (b. 1906), Gladyce (b. 1908), and Hilda Clifford (b. 1910).[5] For unknown reasons, Harry and Nancy divorced. The children traveled North with their father in what historians entitled the Great Migration in 1913.
The Flowers migrated to Boiling Springs, Pennsylvania in a home called the “Greenview Dwelling”.[6] Here, Harry raised his children on a rich legacy with a rich knowledge of their African heritage and a value system built on a foundation of love, justice, and moral right.[7] He taught his children the importance of an education and the belief that children are central to the family.[8] These were lessons his children carried throughout their lives passing them on to their own children and community. They were reminded of their father’s lessons until his death on July 7, 1928. His efforts during the Civil War were honored in 1998 with the dedication of the African American Civil War Memorial in Washington D.C. If you search closely, you will find his name engraved on the memorial’s sculpture.
Sergeant Harry Florence Flowers
1846-July 7, 1928
“Harry Flowers,” Roots Of A Hidden Legacy: (blog), March 14, 2014, https://flowersfamilyproject.wordpress.com/introduction-2/harry-flowers/.
Harry Flowers died Saturday at his home in Boiling Springs. He is survived by eight children; Chauncey S., John C, of New York; Rachel H., Theodore W., Gladys C, Mrs. George Conway, of Philadelphia, and Hilda, of Boiling Springs. Two grandchildren also survive him.
Funeral services will be held at 2:30 at the Wesley A. M, E. Church, this city. The Rev. Rufus Hawkins will officiate. Burial will be in the Lincoln Cemetery.
Buried:
Lincoln Cemetery
Died:
84 Age: 84
Harry married Lydia Bradley. Lydia was born about 1860 in Florida, USA. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]
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