Joseph Flowers

Joseph Bunberry Flowers (Jesenic: Jósif Flórsling, Hárrman Jósif) (1850-1904) was a Jesenic forefather, traveller, and businessman who is best known among the Jesenic community for being, according to tradition and some varying degrees of contemporary evidence, the final major speaker of the English Jesenic dialect, the final variant of pre-reform Jesenic. Joseph is viewed as perhaps the most influential and important Jesenic historical figure.

Early life
Born on August 2, 1850, into the family of Hr. William S. Flowers, Joseph's early life is not truly known. It is known, however, that William started to become wealthy in this time period, so it can be determined that Joseph grew up richly.

Parents and siblings of Joseph Flowers

 * William Strong Flowers (Wilhalm Strang Flórsling, Hárrman Wilhalm II), 1817-1875; Martha Jane Cheek Flowers, 1826-1908
 * Maggie Flowers Nelson, 1848-1926
 * Joseph Flowers, 1850-1904
 * Ignatious *Richard Flowers, 1853-1863
 * Alice H. Flowers, 1856-1869
 * Willie Jane Flowers, 1864-1955

Later life
What we do know about Joseph begins around the time of the death of his brother, Ignatious Flowers, on August 28, 1863. The Civil War ended around two years after this. One of his sisters, Willie Jane Flowers, was born in 1864. His father, William, had lost lots of his wealth as a result of the war. This was certainly one of the greater issues that caused the end of the Jesenic dialect- lack of money to continue proper education. They still had just enough money for Joseph to travel the country for business purposes as a young commercial traveller. Because he settled at VMI for a year from 1869 to 1870, we are able to see how he looked at that point due to the picture he took when he joined that school. From this, we also know his aforementioned job, which he used to support himself and his family back home. His father William died on May 1, 1875, and Joseph married Lucy Newman on March 26, 1877. He was the father of two children, Hr. Charles N. Flowers and Bessie Flowers Rhymes. It is known that Joseph himself went on to become a planter by 1880—the U.S. Census from that year and legends both back up that information. From the fact that he died in Fort Worth (discussed more in the next section), it can also be inferred that he travelled often.

Death
Joseph died either on March 30, 1904, in Fort Worth, Texas. The death date is verified by Virginia Military Instititute records that were further verified by relatives; the death date of April 1 listed on his gravestone is incorrect. The cause of his death is unknown since a death certificate has not yet been found. He was buried in the old section of the Hazlehurst Cemetery, next to the grave of his nephew Thomas Joseph Nelson, on April 2.

Legacy
Joseph is today viewed as a major Jesenic historical figure due to his ancestry and his possible attempt to save what was left of his native tongue. The image of Joseph is often associated with Jesenic symbolism because of these reasons. Today, his grave, along with the graves of his other family members, marks an important destination for Jesenic people (cultural tourists) arriving in his hometown; Jesenic people also set apart days of remembrance for Joseph—Jósifsdáganin—on March 30, March 31, April 1 (all three days are typically set apart), and August 2 annually.

Trivia

 * The term Josephite refers to any descendant of Joseph. Known Josephites speak only English, and are scattered throughout the Southeast.

Are you a descendant of Joseph?
We would love to hear your input if you are a descendant of Joseph Flowers! You can post your story in the Jesenic Wiki discussion boards or join our Discord server- our link is posted on the front page of the Wiki. If you join the server and have proof to back up claims of ancestry from Joseph (get in contact with a Wiki or Discord server admin), you will be given the elusive Josephite rank. In addition, we offer another major rank, the Flórsling rank, to anyone who is descended from the earliest Jesenic forefathers, and those with the Josephite rank also get this rank!

Info Sources
I would like to extend my thanks to those on Ancestry.com, findagrave.com, and findmylife.com who had collected the majority of information that is now summarized here. To them, I give much credit for said info. Other details came from local collections of Jesenic tradition, the VMI Archives, and from the U.S. Censuses taken from 1850-1890. All of this information is used here specifically for research and archival purposes.
 * Note: Citation for the burial notice image:
 * “The Leader.” The Leader, 6 Apr. 1904, p. 2. (Brookhaven, MS)

Other Resources

 * Find A Grave page (managed by administration of Jesenic Wiki) https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/32240952/joseph-bunberry-flowers