Merced-Mariposa County CA Archives Biographies.....Jordan, Thomas 1863 - ************************************************ Copyright. All rights reserved. http://www.usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm http://www.usgwarchives.net/ca/cafiles.htm ************************************************ File contributed for use in USGenWeb Archives by: Joy Fisher sdgenweb@yahoo.com February 6, 2006, 10:56 pm Author: John Outcalt (1925) THOMAS JORDAN An outstanding character in the progressive element of his district, a worker for the cause of education, and the forward movement for improving the general welfare, Thomas Jordan has done as much as any individual in Merced County to forward the progress of this part of the State. A native of England, his birth took place August 6, 1863, at Southampton, the youngest of twelve children born to his parents, and the only one to leave England. His people were of moderate circumstances, and he obtained his education in the public schools near Southampton. In 1884, Mr. Jordan left home to come to the United States; his first two years in the new country were spent in the timber region of Sturgeon, Mich., on the Great Lakes, and of this period two seasons were put in as an edger in one of the large sawmills, at $1.25 a day. In 1886, he came to California and located in Merced County, working in the grain fields for the Ostrander Ranch Company; then after six years at Atwater and Plainsburg, and a two-year period spent on the Leeker ranch in Merced and Mariposa Counties, he invested his savings in land, and a home near Plainsburg. He later purchased 440 acres in the Appling District, which remained the family home for fifteen years, and in the meantime he added another ranch to his holdings, the Hamlett place, a 280-acre grain ranch, which he still owns, and eighty-one acres in Dixieland Colony, forty acres near Le Grand, and recently ten acres and his residence on the edge of that town. He sold his 440 acres in the Appling District about 1913. Coming to California with practically no assets, he has by his own unaided efforts made what he owns and holds, made possible through the cooperation of his helpmate, his wife, faithful and devoted. The marriage of Mr. Jordan, at New Forest, England, on December 24, 1887, united him with Miss Alice Vince, a native of Alden, England, and eight children have blessed their union; Gertrude, Mrs. Otto Hake, in Madera County; Viola A., died an infant; Edward, a farmer at Athlone; Margaret, wife of Neal Watts; Fred, in Alameda; LeRoy; Vince; and Ruth. There are six grandchildren in the family. Mr. Jordan received his United States citizenship papers at Merced, on July 26, 1896, and he takes a keen interest in civic, State, and national affairs, voting on all issues and picking his men with the same foresight which has made his success in life. He is director of the Merced County Farm Bureau, five years in office, and is prominent in irrigation movements, with great faith in the future of Merced County, and to his faith he adds works. He is a stockholder in the Le Grand Bank and one of its organizers. Fraternally, he belongs to the Odd Fellow and Rebekah lodges, and is a charter member of the Redmen, a past officer and delegate for six years. Mr. Jordan has been absent from Merced County on but two occasions since his first arrival here; six weeks in 1912, on a business trip to his old home in England; and six months in 1921, when, with his wife, he made an extended visit there. Additional Comments: From: HISTORY OF MERCED COUNTY CALIFORNIA WITH A Biographical Review OF The Leading Men and Women of the County Who Have Been Identified with Its Growth and Development from the Early Days to the Present HISTORY BY JOHN OUTCALT ILLUSTRATED COMPLETE IN ONE VOLUME HISTORIC RECORD COMPANY LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA 1925 File at: http://files.usgwarchives.net/ca/merced/bios/jordan440bs.txt This file has been created by a form at http://www.poppet.org/cafiles/ File size: 4.0 Kb