James Henry Jordan (December 21, 1842 – April 5, 1912) was a justice of the

Indiana Supreme Court The Indiana Supreme Court, established by Article 7 of the Indiana Constitution, is the highest judicial authority in the state of Indiana. Located in Indianapolis, Indiana, Indianapolis, the Court's chambers are in the north wing of the Indiana ...

from January 7, 1895, to April 5, 1912.

Biography

Born in

Woodstock, Virginia Woodstock is a town and the county seat of Shenandoah County, Virginia, United States. It has a population of 5,212 according to the 2017 census. Woodstock comprises 3.2 square miles of incorporated area of the town, and is located along the ...

, Jordan came to Indiana in 1853 with his parents, who settled near

Corydon, Indiana Corydon is a town in Harrison Township, Harrison County, Indiana. Located north of the Ohio River in the extreme southern part of the U.S. state of Indiana, it is the seat of government for Harrison County. Corydon was founded in 1808 and served ...

, where he lived until the outbreak of the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states th ...

.Leander J. Monks, ''Courts and Lawyers of Indiana'' (1916), p. 280-81. He then enlisted in the Indiana legion and served for three years with the Forty-fifth Regiment, Indiana Volunteers, the Third Cavalry, participating in seventy-six engagements and twice being wounded.Minde C. Browning, Richard Humphrey, and Bruce Kleinschmidt,
Biographical Sketches of Indiana Supreme Court Justices
, ''

Indiana Law Review The Indiana University Robert H. McKinney School of Law (IU McKinney) is located on the campus of Indiana University – Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI) in Indianapolis, Indiana, the urban campus of Indiana University. In the summer of 200 ...

'', Vol. 30, No. 1 (1997), section reproduced i
Indiana Courts Justice Biographies page
"Judge Jordan Dead at Martinsville", ''The Muncie Star Press'' (April 6, 1912), p. 1. At the close of the war, he was promoted to the rank of lieutenant colonel. On returning from the war he attended

Wabash College Wabash College is a private liberal arts men's college in Crawfordsville, Indiana. Founded in 1832 by several Dartmouth College graduates and Midwestern leaders, it enrolls nearly 900 students. The college offers an undergraduate liberal arts cur ...

, but left there and received his

B.A. Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four yea ...

from Indiana University in 1868, and also read law with Judges

William A. Porter William A. Porter (1928-2015) was an American businessperson who, along with Bernard A. Newcomb founded the first electronic trading platform, E-Trade. After the success of E-Trade, Porter also co-founded International Securities Exchange with ...

and Thomas C. Slaughter to gain admission to the Indiana bar in 1868. He re-entered Indiana University and received an

LL.B. Bachelor of Laws ( la, Legum Baccalaureus; LL.B.) is an undergraduate law degree in the United Kingdom and most common law jurisdictions. Bachelor of Laws is also the name of the law degree awarded by universities in the People's Republic of Chi ...

from the Indiana University School of Law – Bloomington in 1871. He was admitted to the bar at Corydon in 1871. He moved to

Clinton, Missouri Clinton is a city in Henry County, Missouri, United States. The population was 8,792 at the 2020 census. It is the county seat of Henry County. History Clinton was laid out in 1836. The city was named for New York Governor DeWitt Clinton ...

, but returned to Indiana and settled at

Martinsville, Indiana Martinsville is a city in Washington Township, Morgan County, in the U.S. state of Indiana. The population was 11,828 at the 2010 United States Census. The city is the county seat of Morgan County. History Martinsville was founded in 1822. It is ...

. In 1872 he was appointed district attorney of the Common Pleas court and served until this court was abolished in 1873. He was then elected city attorney of Martinsville, serving in this capacity for twelve years. He was selected as one of three

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

candidates for the Supreme Court from the First District in the state convention of August 8, 1888,Leander J. Monks, ''Courts and Lawyers of Indiana'' (1916), p. 273. but his candidacy was unsuccessful. He was elected in 1894 and served until his death, in

. He was a member of the

Grand Army of the Republic The Grand Army of the Republic (GAR) was a fraternal organization composed of veterans of the Union Army (United States Army), Union Navy (U.S. Navy), and the Marines who served in the American Civil War. It was founded in 1866 in Decatur, Il ...

, and served as a trustee of Indiana University for a number of years. Jordan died in his home in Martinsville following five months of illness with

Bright's disease Bright's disease is a historical classification of kidney diseases that are described in modern medicine as acute or chronic nephritis. It was characterized by swelling and the presence of albumin in the urine, and was frequently accompanied b ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Jordan, James Justices of the Indiana Supreme Court 1842 births 1912 deaths Indiana University Bloomington alumni Indiana University Maurer School of Law alumni People from Woodstock, Virginia Union Army soldiers 19th-century American judges