Jordan was an enslaved worker who lived and worked at Tuckahoe during the Wight and Allen period. Jordan was one of the children of Ellen Anderson Smith (father unclear) and thought to be born sometime between 1847-1848. By 1858 his mother had started a family with Ed Smith. Jordan’s siblings were Daniel, Jane, Dilsey, Nancy, Harriet, Wallace and Andrew. Like many of his siblings, Jordan worked primarily in the fields at Tuckahoe.
Jordan and his family lived in the North Cabin which still stands along Plantation Street. In 1858 their family of 9 was recorded as having 5 blankets among them.
After the Civil War, it seems that some of the Smith family stayed in the area. The 1870 census lists Ellen and Ed in Goochland County but Jordan was not living with them at the time. It is unknown if he lived nearby or if he left the area entirely.