Mellette County, South Dakota
Family Histories & Biographies - Jordan Surname
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Colonel C. P. Jordan
(Transcribed, with permission from the Mellette County Historical Society, from "Mellette County 1911-1961" published by the Mellette County Centennial Committee)
To produce a history of the Sioux people of the
area would take years of research and conversation
with what few "oldtimers" remain. Written records
are few and sketchy, and not many people remain
who can recall the early days.
However, a few personalities loomed large and
left an unmistakable mark on the shaping of this part
of the community. One of the best-known and most
remarkable of these men was Colonel C. P. Jordan,
veteran government official and Indian trader.
Colonel Jordan came to his section of the country
as a young man of 21. He was born in Piqua; Ohio,
on May 12, 1851, of stock that came over in the
Mayflower in 1620. He could trace his ancestry
directly to two men who made that historic voyage.
Another interesting fact concerning his ancestry is
that his grandmother and the grandmother of General Custer were sisters.
A gentle, soft-voiced Sioux Indian girl became Col. Jordan's bride at the Red Cloud Indian Agency on December 11, 1878. Miss Julia Walks First was the daughter of a prominent and influential family, and her marriage to Col. Jordan was an event of importance. The title of Colonel was conferred on Mr. Jordan by a special act of Congress in recognition of services he rendered to the U. S. Government. He had seen military service during the Civil War, but as a drummer boy he enlisted at the age of eleven!
Col. Jordan was of great service to both the government and the Indian people during the 1870's and 1880's when there was great hostility on the part of the Indians toward the government. Since the Colonel enjoyed the confidence and trust of both sides of the conflict, he was able to negotiate many disputes and lead them to peaceful settlement.
One interesting, though less historically important act of Col. Jordan's career is that he, with Ople Chambers and Ernest Jackson, helped choose the site for the town of White River.
Col. Jordan helped "Buffalo Bill" recruit Indians for his world-famous "Wild-West Shows." He also organized and produced at least two shows of his own which were presented at the San Francisco Exposition in the 1890's and the Atlantic states and International Cotton Exposition at Atlanta, Georgia, 1895. He took a group of Indians to the Zoological Gardens exhibition at Cincinnati, Ohio about 1897.
(Transcribed, with permission from the Mellette County Historical Society, from "Mellette County 1911-1961" published by the Mellette County Centennial Committee)
To produce a history of the Sioux people of the
area would take years of research and conversation
with what few "oldtimers" remain. Written records
are few and sketchy, and not many people remain
who can recall the early days.
However, a few personalities loomed large and
left an unmistakable mark on the shaping of this part
of the community. One of the best-known and most
remarkable of these men was Colonel C. P. Jordan,
veteran government official and Indian trader.
Colonel Jordan came to his section of the country
as a young man of 21. He was born in Piqua; Ohio,
on May 12, 1851, of stock that came over in the
Mayflower in 1620. He could trace his ancestry
directly to two men who made that historic voyage.
Another interesting fact concerning his ancestry is
that his grandmother and the grandmother of General Custer were sisters.
A gentle, soft-voiced Sioux Indian girl became Col. Jordan's bride at the Red Cloud Indian Agency on December 11, 1878. Miss Julia Walks First was the daughter of a prominent and influential family, and her marriage to Col. Jordan was an event of importance. The title of Colonel was conferred on Mr. Jordan by a special act of Congress in recognition of services he rendered to the U. S. Government. He had seen military service during the Civil War, but as a drummer boy he enlisted at the age of eleven!
Col. Jordan was of great service to both the government and the Indian people during the 1870's and 1880's when there was great hostility on the part of the Indians toward the government. Since the Colonel enjoyed the confidence and trust of both sides of the conflict, he was able to negotiate many disputes and lead them to peaceful settlement.
One interesting, though less historically important act of Col. Jordan's career is that he, with Ople Chambers and Ernest Jackson, helped choose the site for the town of White River.
Col. Jordan helped "Buffalo Bill" recruit Indians for his world-famous "Wild-West Shows." He also organized and produced at least two shows of his own which were presented at the San Francisco Exposition in the 1890's and the Atlantic states and International Cotton Exposition at Atlanta, Georgia, 1895. He took a group of Indians to the Zoological Gardens exhibition at Cincinnati, Ohio about 1897.
Swift Bear, head chief of the Brule tribe and successor to Spotted Tail is pictured with Col. C. P. Jordan.
Buffalo Bill (far right) visits with Col. C. P. Jordan's Wild-West Show in Atlanta, Georgia in 1895. Jordan is shown on far left.
Jordan Surname
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