Dr. Cleon Aurelius Flowers

Dr. Cleon Aurelius Flowers was a pioneering Arkansas physician whose career of firsts earned him national recognition and lasting respect. Born July 26, 1913, in Stamps, Arkansas, he was the second of three sons of Alonza William Flowers, a businessman, and Beulah Lee Sampson Flowers, an educator. After graduating from Stamps Colored High School in 1928 and from Philander Smith College High School in 1932, he enrolled at Arkansas Agricultural, Mechanical & Normal College, now the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff, where he majored in biology and graduated with honors in 1939. He went on to earn his medical degree from Meharry Medical College in Nashville, Tennessee, in 1943. Drafted into the U.S. Army Corps while still a student, he later fulfilled his service in 1955, commissioned as a major with the 33rd Division at Bellevue, Illinois.

Dr. Flowers began his medical career at the McRae Tuberculosis Sanitarium for Negroes in Alexander, Arkansas, before opening his first private practice in 1945 in the historic Mosaic Templars building in Little Rock. A year later, he purchased the facility that housed United Links Hospital, dedicated to serving Black patients. Although the hospital closed in 1950, the building remains a landmark, now known as the Flowers Professional Building. That same year, he broke barriers in Pine Bluff as one of the first two Black physicians hired at Davis Hospital, the predecessor of Jefferson Regional Medical Center.

In 1954, Dr. Flowers achieved another milestone when he delivered Arkansas’s first Siamese twins not born in a hospital, an accomplishment that drew national coverage, including in the August 17, 1954 edition of (Jet Magazine).

Beyond his medical practice, Dr. Flowers gave decades of service to his community and faith. A lifelong member of St. James United Methodist Church in Pine Bluff, he served for more than sixty years in leadership roles as trustee and finance committee member. He was active in the NAACP, the National Medical Association, and the Arkansas and Southeast Arkansas Medical, Dental, and Pharmaceutical Associations, serving as president of both. He also contributed as a member of the 20th Century Club, the Northside Kiwanis Club, the AM&N/UAPB Board of Trustees, and Prince Hall Masons.

Dr. Flowers and his wife, Martha Raspberry Flowers, raised six children: Dr. Cleon Flowers Jr., Dr. John Flowers Sr., Dr. Martha Ann Flowers, Clifford Flowers Sr., Clyde Flowers, and Randall Flowers. He passed away on his 89thbirthday in 2002, leaving behind a legacy of service, excellence, and faith. His brothers, attorney William Harold Flowers (Arkansas Black Hall of Fame Class of 2004) and attorney Curtis Virgil Flowers, were equally accomplished. Reflecting on his life’s work, Dr. Flowers often said: “Practicing medicine is part of my purpose in life. I know that I must use my God-given talents wisely so I may be blessed, and that helps me to continue to bless others in the process.”