May 7, 1890 George Jordan received the Congressional Medal of Honor, America’s highest military decoration for his actions during the Indian Wars. Jordan was born enslaved in Williamson County, Tennessee in 1847 and by 1880 was serving as a sergeant in the 9th Cavalry Regiment in New Mexico. His citation reads, “While commanding a detachment of 25 men at Fort Tularosa, New Mexico, repulsed a force of more than 100 Indians. At Carrizo Canyon, New Mexico, while commanding the right of a detachment of 19 men, on 12 August 1881, he stubbornly held his ground in an extremely exposed position and gallantly forced back a much superior number of the enemy, preventing them from surrounding the command.” Jordan reached the rank of first sergeant before retiring from the army in 1897. Not much is known of Jordan’s life before or after the army except that he died October 24, 1904.
