Project 888
Name: Henry JORDAN
Rank / Rating: STM2-Steward's Mate Second ClassService #: 753 24 43 DOB: 1926 From: East St. Louis, IL Parents: Albert Jordan and Marie Jordan Went Aboard: Dec 30, 1944 Age When Ship Went Down: 19 Spouse: Children: Grandchildren: Bio Submitted By: Jane Gwinn Goodall |
 JORDAN, Henry |
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Henry Jordan’s father’s name was Albert Jordan. The younger Jordan enlisted from East Saint Louis, Illinois, which is in southwestern Illinois along the Mississippi River opposite of Saint Louis, Missouri.
Using those clues, we searched Ancestry.com. While we were unable to locate a draft registration card for Henry, we did locate one for his father, Albert, born on 25 August 1892 in Shuqualak, Mississippi.
Jordan’s father, by then living in East St. Louis, Illinois, was 49 years of age when he registered for the WWII draft on 27 April 1942.
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| The 1940 Census for East Saint Louis, IL shows that parents Albert and Marie Jordan (both born in Mississippi) had a large family, including nine children. Their fifth-born child, H. Dee, was listed as 12 years old at the time of the 1940 census. Through Ancestry.com Family Tree, we were able to contact Lisa Johnson, a family member of his younger sister, Doris, who confirmed Henry’s birth year as 1926. His three oldest siblings George (1919), James (1922), and Lettia (1923) were born in Missouri. Sister Minnie (1925) and H. Dee were born in Kentucky. Doris was born in Tennessee and is listed as age 9 in the 1940 Census. The youngest children were born in Missouri. Chester was 8, Lenabell was 6, and Franklin was 5 at the time of the 1940 Census. The family moved to East St. Louis, Illinois in 1935. According to the family tree information on Ancestry.com, his youngest brother Franklin died at a young age. Henry Jordan came aboard USS Indianapolis (CA-35) on 30 December 1944. He was in the same transfer group from the Navy Training and Distribution Center at Camp Elliott, San Diego as shipmates Joseph Berry, Jr., Joe Walker Hill, Jimmie Lee Hollingsworth, and Cleo Randolph. His rank was Steward’s Mate Second Class. Jordan joined Indy’s crew one month after Captain Charles B. McVay, III took command of the ship. He participated in the final two engagements for which Indy was awarded Battle Stars. Henry was aboard for the Iwo Jima and Okinawa operations. On 31 March 1945, Indianapolis was knocked out by a lone kamikaze fighter in the dawn sun. Jordan survived the kamikaze attack without injury and came back to Mare Island with the ship for repairs. He was part of the ship’s company when Indy sailed from San Francisco Bay on 16 July 1945 for her top-secret mission. Henry Jordan was 19 years old when Indy was sunk. The Belleville News-Democrat listed Steward’s Mate Second Class Henry Jordan of Missouri Avenue, East St. Louis, as killed in the Pacific area. He had previously been reported as missing. | |
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 | Henry JORDAN, STM2-Steward's Mate Second Class, was one of 28 African-American men who were members of the Steward Branch, the only division on the ship in which there was not a single survivor. The restricted duties of the Steward Branch were to serve the officers of the ship, including the admiral's and captain's wardrooms, dining areas and sleeping quarters. The services were essential to the smooth and efficient running of Indianapolis. Many of Indianapolis's African-American crew members voluntarily performed duties as gunners' mates, assigned to a specific battle station as one complete unit. More details about the valuable service of these men can be found by reading the book: 'Heroes in the Shadows: The Untold Story of the African American Sailors Aboard USS Indianapolis (CA-35)', by Jane Gwinn Goodall, with contributions from Janice Alston and Arlene Taylor (Henry Jackson, StM1), Jeanette Pitts, M.D. (Albert Rice, StM1), and Jacqueline Dugan and Ernestine Peete (Magellan Williams, StM1). |
