Thomas S. Jordan was born on 3 January, 1832 in Macon, Bibb county, GA (according to his obit). Both of his parents were born in GA (according to his later census info). In 1847, he began apprenticeship as a printer in "the Advertiser" office (this is from his newspaper obit in Ashland, AL - I am assuming that this means the "Advertiser" newspaper in Montgomery, AL, given that, according to that same obit, in 1852 he was foreman of the job office that printed the Code of Alabama - Brittan and DeWolf, State Printers, Montgomery, AL). I can not find him anywhere on the 1850 census. He would have been 18 for that census. On the 10th of October, 1859, at Wedowee, Randolph County, Alabama, Thomas married Mary Creel, who was born in Carroll county, GA; she was the daughter of Jordan Creel and Mary (Polly) White, both of Carroll county. The 1860 Randolph Co., AL, census, Wedowee, Dwelling 17, in the same household, I find: T.G.W. Jourdan (28, male, printer, born in GA, married within the yr) Mary Jourdan (22, female, HW, born in GA, married within the yr) Cinthia Jourdan (38, female, HW, born in SC) T.G.W. Jordan married Cynthia Smith in Harris County, GA, July 14, 1853. Thomas S. Jordan and Mary Creel married in 1859. Apparently, the man listed in the 1850 Randolph county census is Thomas S., not T.G.W. Where was T.G.W. that day, and what relationship is he to Thomas S.? Cynthia died of some sort of fever shortly after this census was taken, according to the 1860 mortality schedule. The only additional mention of T.G.W. that has been found is on a muster of the Camp of Instruction in Talladega during the Civil War. Thomas S. was a courier for the C. S. A. between West Point, GA and Talladega, AL during the Civil War. I can not find him on a muster roll, but am told couriers were often not listed on a muster. On July 21, 1860, Thomas and Mary's first son, Joseph Wiley Jordan, was born. A second son, William Dotson Jordan, was born in 1862, and in 1864, a daughter, Mary. After the war, Thomas farmed for a while near Opelika, AL, then worked as a printer until starting his own newspaper, The Opelika Reformer. Little Mary died at age 7, and is buried in Girard, near Opelika. Thomas and Mary later adopted Mary Dyson/Dison, b. 1876. Apparently they did not legally adopt her, since she kept the surname Dyson until her marriage. In 1876, Thomas moved from Opelika to Coosa county, AL, where he and his sons published The Coosa News. In 1878, he moved to Ashland, AL, in Clay county, where he began publishing another newspaper. At 9:15 PM, 6 May, 1894. Thomas S. Jordan died in Ashland, AL. He had been a Baptist, a longtime Mason (he had a Mason's funeral, but no Masonic records can be found), and he was active in politics. Any assistance in finding anything more about this most frustrating brick wall would be much appreciated!! Carol C-H <cch@netdoor.com> http://www2.netdoor.com/~cch/ Carol C-H <cch@netdoor.com> <carolch@bellsouth.net> http://www2.netdoor.com/~cch/