This is the house where my Grandmom lived. She never drove, so she walked to work at Union Electric, she walked to shop, and she walked to Trinity Lutheran Church, where she played the organ.
This is the old swinging bridge that connected to Coffman Street, just down and across the road from Grandmom's house, and right next to my Great-Grandfather's house.
Clara, my Mom, was the third of ten children born to Bertha and Lawrence Twomey during the depression era. She knew her birth family, and communicated with them; however, she was raised as a foster-child of Lawrence and Bernice Hood. Lawrence Hood died when Mom was young, leaving Bernice to raise her in Flat River, Missouri.
I was born in St. Louis, but I was baptised at Trinity Lutheran Church in Flat River. My brothers and I were all raised in Nashville, but Flat River remained important to us. And we always looked forward to visiting Grandmom.
Trips to Flat River almost always began on Friday nights,
after Dad got home from work and we had finished supper. Before the Interstate highways were built, it was about an eight-hour trip. Our bags went onto the luggage carrier on the roof of our station wagon, and my three brothers and I went into the back. The back seat was folded down and blankets were placed in the back for our use. We were allowed to stay awake as long as we could, then we slept where we dropped.
Once we got to Flat River, my brothers and I slept in the attic. The windows of the attic were small, but we liked being able to look down at the goings-on on Coffman street. The attic also held many treasures, including the old hand-cranked Victrola that played records at 78rpm. Our favorite record was Yes, We Have No Bananas, which we pretty much wore out.
While in Flat River, we loved going down the street to the old swinging bridge. It was quite the adventure, but at its best, it was still hazardous. Yet we survived. Flat River also had massive chat dumps, remnants from all the lead mining in the area. We would climb the chat dumps for picnics, lead and all. Yet, we survived.
Grandmom retired in 1964 and moved across the street from us in Nashville. We loved having her near, but we did miss Flat River.
The Town of Flat River no longer exists.
In 1994, the towns of Flat River, Esther, Elvins, and Rivermines combined to form Park Hills, Missouri. In 2015, my brothers and I attended a Twomey family reunion in St. Louis, and on the way home, we stopped in Park Hills to see what was left. The chat dumps are all gone, as is the swinging bridge,
In 2015, the house was empty and in disrepair. There was an abatement notice from the city posted on the porch.
By 2015, the old swinging bridge was gone, replaced by a safer pedestrian bridge.
We make every effort to document our research. There is a lot of information that I do not have, and I know there are mistakes in this tree. My feelings will not be hurt if you give me corrections or additional information, especially if you can provide sources for the information.
