Flood Family Story

Charles Flood

Shirley (Middleton) Flood

 

These two people are my mom's parents. I never met my grandfather. He died in 1975 when my mom was still in high school. My grandmother passed away just last summer. I miss her. She was funny and mean and always said what she was thinking. They had four children. The oldest, Eugene, lives across the street from me. My aunt Dianne lives on Noland Road in Raytown. My mom lives in Texas, and Johnny, the youngest, lives in Lee's Summit.

 

This side of the family is traced back to Arkansas and the American South. As far back as we can trace, we are in America. Some times go back to before the Revolutionary War!

 

Flood is an Anglicanized spelling of Flud. The spelling was changed just three generations ago when German Gay Flood joined the army. Flud was German's mother's maiden name, but his father was Hugh Brown. Hugh was rumored to have been a Native American.

 

Because of this, my mother registered us with the Western Cherokee Nation of Arkansas and Missouri. I am 1/16th Western Cherokee.

In the family history is a name Fender. This line has been traced to the creator of the Fender guitar, Clarence Leonidas "Leo" Fender. The family has always been musical. Even though my parents do not sing or play instruments, all of my cousins on this side of the family play some sort of instrument. At my grandmother's (Shirley) funeral, my cousins and I played arrangements of hymns together. Between the six of us we had guitar, trumpet, two trombones, French horn, and flute. That was the hardest gig I ever had.