B. Everett Jordan

B. Everett Jordan

Benjamin Everett Jordan (* 8. September 1896 in Ramseur , Randolph County , North Carolina ; †  15. March 1974 in Saxapahaw , North Carolina) was an American politician ( Democratic Party ), of the State of North Carolina in the US Senate took .

Professional career

Everett Jordan first attended the public schools in his home country, then from 1912 to 1913 the Preparatory School of Rutherford College and finally between 1914 and 1915 Trinity College in Durham . During the First World War he was used as a soldier in a tank corps of the US Army in Europe. After his return, he got into the textile business in the 1920s when an uncle offered him the management of a factory that he had recently acquired. Jordan took over the reins of what was known as the Sellers Manufacturing Co. , which later became wholly owned by him. After several decades of successful management, he later passed the tasks on to his two sons when he went into politics.

From 1943 to 1958, Jordan served on his state's Peace Officers and Retirement Commission , which campaigned for retired army officers. He was also a member of the North Carolina Medical Care Committee and Chairman of the Board of Trustees at General Hospital in Alamance County from 1945 to 1951 . He appeared nationwide for the first time from 1954 to 1958 as a member of the Democratic National Committee .

US Senator

When US Senator William Kerr Scott died on April 16, 1958, Jordan was appointed by Governor Luther Hodges to succeed him in Washington, DC . He took up his mandate from April 19, 1958 and also decided the following by-election on November 4 of the same year with 70 percent of the votes against the Republican Richard C. Clarke for himself. In the two subsequent re-elections, his lead over the respective competitors was smaller, but his victory was not in danger. In 1972 Jordan joined again, but was defeated in the primary of his party to Congressman Nick Galifianakis . This in turn lost the actual election against the Republican Jesse Helms , who then replaced Jordan on January 3, 1973 as Senator.

During his tenure in the Senate, Jordan chaired several committees, including the Joint Committee on the Library and the Committee on Rules and Administration . Like most southern senators , he was an advocate of segregation . As a result, his vote for a withdrawal of US troops came rather unexpectedly during the Vietnam War .

Everett Jordan died the year after he left the Senate. The B. Everett Jordan Lake , a reservoir in Chatham County , was named after him, as was an elementary school in Saxapahaw.

Web links

• B. Everett Jordan in the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress (English)

• B. Everett Jordan in the database of Find a Grave (English)