“For Gypsies do not like to stay:” Romani past preserved through graves and headlines

VICKSBURG, Miss. by Evan Winschel (VDN) — Today’s spotlight is dedicated to two of our most famous internments, Flora Mitchell and Linka. Long before the first brick was laid at present-day Vicksburg Catholic School or the encroachment of a growing city, picture a parcel of pastoral land that intermittently served as home for some of the most famous nomads in history… the Gypsies.

How did these wayfaring individuals find their way to Vicksburg, you may ask? The truth is, we may never know. In true transient fashion, these free spirits had quite the journey before making their way to Mississippi. Descendants of the Romani Tribe expelled from Europe, they initially fled to Brazil before wandering north. Among their number was Flora Mitchell.

Flora was born in 1888 and was the daughter of Steve Johns. As was customary in their culture, fathers were to be paid for the privilege of marrying their daughters. And according to Flora’s future husband, Steve Mitchell, he paid a “considerable sum ($1,250) for his bride.” The newlywed Mitchells lived with their clan in a commune located in nearby Lake Providence, Louisiana. At the age of 23, Flora found herself pregnant with her second child. While in Vicksburg, she was admitted to a local hospital and sadly passed away, like so many women before her, from complications during childbirth.

The uniqueness of her lifestyle naturally made front-page news, with The Vicksburg Post noting, “Flora, aged 23, member of a band of Brazilian Gypsies, died at the hospital here as a result of childbirth. The dead woman leaves a husband and one child, about a year old. The Gypsies have a camp near Lake Providence. All the Gypsies will be notified, and will come to Vicksburg, and decide in council where the funeral will take place. The Gypsy funeral ceremonies will be performed. In the meantime, the body will be taken to the old frame building, formerly occupied as the Klondike Saloon. The husband was bowed with grief, and he is with the body at the undertaking parlors.”

The bitterly cold weather on the day of her funeral fittingly matched the solemn mood of the gathered mourners. Many curious citizens attended the burial in the hopes of experiencing a Gypsy ceremony firsthand. Probably to their disappointment, traditional Catholic funeral rituals were followed. Her death would not be the only time Flora made front-page news.

Soon after the last handful of earth descended on her casket, Flora’s widowed husband accused her father of kidnapping their child and filed suit. Steve Johns admittedly took possession of his granddaughter on the basis that Mr. Mitchell had been “brutal to her (Flora), had beaten her, and that this rough treatment caused her death.” These inflammatory accusations were vehemently denied by Steve Mitchell and eventually were dismissed after testimony from Doctor B. B. Martin, who stated that “Mitchell remained with her almost constantly, and (they) seemed to be very much devoted to each other.”

With her death still fresh in memory, a second Gypsy passed away a little over a year later. Linka was born in San Antonio, Texas, on April 13, 1909, and passed away on January 27, 1917. Unfortunately, no documentation exists of her life or death. All that remains is her bead-adorned tombstone inscribed with, “This is our present.”

“For Gypsies do not like to stay- They only come to go away.” Ludwig Bemelmans

Cedar Hill Cemetery Association was formed in 2024 with the goal of assisting the City of Vicksburg in restoration and beautification of our historic Cedar Hill Cemetery. The Association will be presenting its inaugural tour event “Voices from the Hills” on October 16, 17, and 18, 2025 as part of Vicksburg’s Bicentennial Celebrations. For more information or to get involved, contact chcassociation@yahoo.com or visit their Facebook page.