FRANCIS D. JORDAN, LCDR, USN

From USNA Virtual Memorial Hall
Francis Jordan '29

Date of birth: June 16, 1906

Date of death: October 24, 1944

Age: 38

Lucky Bag

From the 1929 Lucky Bag:

1929 Jordan LB.jpg

FRANCIS DIXON JORDAN

Raleigh, North Carolina

"Flash" "Horse" "Dick"

A PERSISTENT spirit, along with an almost uncanny ability to use a flashlight, enabled Flash to emerge from the pine forests of his native state and seek his way to fame and fortune in wider fields. Following in the footsteps of an older brother he chose the Navy as the most suitable field in which to display his talents.

It was not without difficulty that he finally arrived among us. After an unsuccessful attempt to enter with "Twenty-Eight," he enlisted in the Navy and his persistence was rewarded when he joined us late Plebe summer.

A never-ending source of amusement to those with whom he comes in contact, Horse immediately became immensely popular with the upper classes and his Plebe year was the kind now only thought of as part of the "Old Navy." His tales of horrors of that last coal-burning cruise are also a part of the "Old Navy," but in spite of it all, or perhaps because of it all, he has consistently remained a true Southern gentleman, true to the little girl back home, and always a loyal friend and classmate.

Black N. Class Gym 2. Sub-Squad 4, 3, 2. 2 P.O.

1929 Jordan LB.jpg

FRANCIS DIXON JORDAN

Raleigh, North Carolina

"Flash" "Horse" "Dick"

A PERSISTENT spirit, along with an almost uncanny ability to use a flashlight, enabled Flash to emerge from the pine forests of his native state and seek his way to fame and fortune in wider fields. Following in the footsteps of an older brother he chose the Navy as the most suitable field in which to display his talents.

It was not without difficulty that he finally arrived among us. After an unsuccessful attempt to enter with "Twenty-Eight," he enlisted in the Navy and his persistence was rewarded when he joined us late Plebe summer.

A never-ending source of amusement to those with whom he comes in contact, Horse immediately became immensely popular with the upper classes and his Plebe year was the kind now only thought of as part of the "Old Navy." His tales of horrors of that last coal-burning cruise are also a part of the "Old Navy," but in spite of it all, or perhaps because of it all, he has consistently remained a true Southern gentleman, true to the little girl back home, and always a loyal friend and classmate.

Black N. Class Gym 2. Sub-Squad 4, 3, 2. 2 P.O.

Loss

Francis was lost when the Japanese "Hell Ship" he was aboard, Arisan Maru, was sunk by an American submarine on October 24, 1944.

He was the executive officer of USS Luzon (PG 47) until that ship was scuttled in Manila Bay on May 6, 1942, shortly before Corregidor was surrendered.

Other Information

From researcher Kathy Franz:

Francis went by Dixon in school and graduated from Raleigh high school in 1923. He played the part of Lord Times in the senior play “A Kiss for Cinderella.” General Appearance: Gentlemanly. Aim in Life: Build a bridge across the Pacific. Chief Virtue: Ambition. Always: Asking questions. Senior Prophecy: Dixon Jordan is a naval officer.

Born and raised in Raleigh, he enlisted in the Navy on August 15, 1924. He was sent to Hampton Roads, Virginia, for training. He was a seaman second class when he passed the examination for the Naval Academy.

In December, 1929, Francis was ordered to duty on the Staff of Rear Admiral Bostwick, Commander of the Battleships Divisions of the U. S. Battle Fleet.

From 1932-1933, he was assistant to Commander Rosendahl in the lighter than air service.

Francis married Katherine Dorothy Hughes on June 8, 1933, at her parents’ home in Raleigh, North Carolina. His second wife was Rowena Cook of Shanghai. They married in Shanghai in 1940. Their son, Francis Dixon Jordan, Jr., was born on August 6, 1941, in Raleigh while Francis was on duty on the U. S. S. Luzon in Shanghai.

In December, 1934, Japan requested the United States to withdraw diplomatic immunity privileges accorded to American army and navy officers assigned to the embassy in Tokyo as language students. Francis was one of the navy students.

In July, 1938, his sister Julia showed a motion picture to friends that Francis made in Japan and during his return trip home via the Near East and Europe.

Francis was promoted to lieutenant commander in November, 1941.

He was reported missing in action on May 9, 1942. In March, 1943, he was reported by the Navy to be a prisoner of the Japanese in the Philippines.

Francis’ name, along with many others, was inscribed on the World War II memorial in front of the Wake County Courthouse in Raleigh.

His father Thomas was a physician who died in 1933. Francis was survived by his mother Ida and brother Lt. Cmdr. Leslie L. Jordan of Redlands, Cal. His four surviving sisters were Julia, Betty (Mrs. C. E. Bell,) Ida (Mrs. D. H. Wigg) of Norfolk and Mary Alice (Mrs. J. T. Lazar) of Florence, S.C.

Francis was in a Japanese immersion program in 1934-1937.

His wife was listed as next of kin. He has a memory marker in North Carolina.

Photographs

Prisoner of War Medal

From Hall of Valor:

Lieutenant Commander Francis D. Jordan (NSN: 0-62589), United States Navy, was captured by the Japanese after the fall of Corregidor, Philippine Islands, on 6 May 1942, and was held as a Prisoner of War until his death while still in captivity.

General Orders: NARA Database: Records of World War II Prisoners of War, created, 1942 - 1947
Service: Navy
Rank: Lieutenant Commander

Navy Directories & Officer Registers

The "Register of Commissioned and Warrant Officers of the United States Navy and Marine Corps" was published annually from 1815 through at least the 1970s; it provided rank, command or station, and occasionally billet until the beginning of World War II when command/station was no longer included. Scanned copies were reviewed and data entered from the mid-1840s through 1922, when more-frequent Navy Directories were available.

The Navy Directory was a publication that provided information on the command, billet, and rank of every active and retired naval officer. Single editions have been found online from January 1915 and March 1918, and then from three to six editions per year from 1923 through 1940; the final edition is from April 1941.

The entries in both series of documents are sometimes cryptic and confusing. They are often inconsistent, even within an edition, with the name of commands; this is especially true for aviation squadrons in the 1920s and early 1930s.

Alumni listed at the same command may or may not have had significant interactions; they could have shared a stateroom or workspace, stood many hours of watch together… or, especially at the larger commands, they might not have known each other at all. The information provides the opportunity to draw connections that are otherwise invisible, though, and gives a fuller view of the professional experiences of these alumni in Memorial Hall.

July 1929
Ensign, USS West Virginia


Others at or embarked at this command:
LT Stephen Cooke '21 (Observation Squadron (VO) 5B)
October 1929
Ensign, USS West Virginia


Others at or embarked at this command:
LT Stephen Cooke '21 (Observation Squadron (VO) 5B)
January 1930
Ensign, staff, Battleship Division 5, USS West Virginia

Others at or embarked at USS West Virginia:
LT Stephen Cooke '21 (Observation Squadron (VO) 5B)
ENS Cyrus Clendening '27 (USS West Virginia)
ENS Carl Lindgren '28 (USS West Virginia)
April 1930
Ensign, staff, Battleship Division 5, USS West Virginia

Others at or embarked at USS West Virginia:
LT Stephen Cooke '21 (Observation Plane Squadron (VO) 5B)
ENS Cyrus Clendening '27 (USS West Virginia)
ENS Carl Lindgren '28 (USS West Virginia)
October 1930
Ensign, staff, Battleship Division 5, USS West Virginia

Others at this command:

Others at or embarked at USS West Virginia:
LT Stephen Cooke '21 (Observation Plane Squadron (VO) 5B)
LTjg Theodore Marshall '24 (Observation Plane Squadron (VO) 5B)
ENS Mack Vorhees '30 (USS West Virginia)
January 1931
Ensign, staff, Battleship Division 5, USS West Virginia

Others at this command:

Others at or embarked at USS West Virginia:
LCDR Charles Cecil '16 (USS West Virginia)
LTjg Theodore Marshall '24 (Observation Plane Squadron (VO) 5B)
ENS Mack Vorhees '30 (USS West Virginia)
April 1931
Ensign, USS West Virginia


Others at or embarked at this command:
LCDR Daniel Callaghan '11 (Battleship Division 5)
LTjg Theodore Marshall '24 (Observation Plane Squadron (VO) 4B)
July 1931
Ensign, USS West Virginia


Others at or embarked at this command:
LTjg Theodore Marshall '24 (Observation Plane Squadron (VO) 4B)
ENS Robert Germany, Jr. '30 (Battleship Division 4)
October 1931
Ensign, USS West Virginia


Others at or embarked at this command:
LTjg Theodore Marshall '24 (Observation Plane Squadron (VO) 4B)
ENS Robert Germany, Jr. '30 (Battleship Division 4)
January 1932
Ensign, USS West Virginia


Others at or embarked at this command:
LTjg Theodore Marshall '24 (Observation Plane Squadron (VO) 4B)
ENS Robert Germany, Jr. '30 (Battleship Division 4)
ENS John Shaffer, III '30 (Battleship Division 4)
April 1932
Ensign, USS West Virginia


Others at or embarked at this command:
LTjg Theodore Marshall '24 (Observation Plane Squadron (VO) 4B)
ENS Robert Germany, Jr. '30 (Battleship Division 4)
ENS John Shaffer, III '30 (Battleship Division 4)
October 1932
Lieutenant (j.g.), USS West Virginia


Others at or embarked at this command:
LTjg Theodore Marshall '24 (Observation Plane Squadron (VO) 4B)
January 1933
Lieutenant (j.g.), USS West Virginia


Others at or embarked at this command:
LTjg Theodore Marshall '24 (Observation Plane Squadron (VO) 4B)
April 1933
Lieutenant (j.g.), USS West Virginia


Others at or embarked at this command:
LTjg Theodore Marshall '24 (Observation Plane Squadron (VO) 4B)
ENS Willis Thomas '31 (Battleship Division 4)
July 1933
Lieutenant (j.g.), USS Bridge
October 1933
Lieutenant (j.g.), sick leave
April 1934
Lieutenant (j.g.), USS Greer
July 1934
Lieutenant (j.g.), USS Greer
October 1934
Lieutenant (j.g.), USS Chaumont
January 1935
Lieutenant (j.g.), USS Chaumont
April 1935
Lieutenant (j.g.), under instruction, Attaché, American Embassy, Tokyo, Japan
April 1936
Lieutenant (j.g.), under instruction, Attaché, American Embassy, Tokyo, Japan
July 1936
Lieutenant (j.g.), under instruction, Attaché, American Embassy, Tokyo, Japan
January 1937
Lieutenant (j.g.), under instruction, Attaché, American Embassy, Tokyo, Japan
April 1937
Lieutenant (j.g.), under instruction, Attaché, American Embassy, Tokyo, Japan
September 1937
Lieutenant (j.g.), under instruction, Attaché, American Embassy, Tokyo, Japan
January 1938
Lieutenant, Navy Department, Washington, D.C.

July 1938
Lieutenant, USS Phoenix
January 1939
Lieutenant, USS Phoenix

Others at this command:
October 1939
Lieutenant, USS Phoenix

Others at this command:
June 1940
Lieutenant, USS Luzon
November 1940
Lieutenant, USS Luzon

April 1941
Lieutenant, USS Luzon


Class of 1929

Francis is one of 29 members of the Class of 1929 on Virtual Memorial Hall.

QR code

The "category" links below lead to lists of related Honorees; use them to explore further the service and sacrifice of alumni in Memorial Hall.