Battle of New Orleans History Program at 419 Decatur St
Drummer Boy of New Orleans: Jordan Bankston Noble
Saturday at 12:00 noon
At the National Park Service French Quarter Visitor Center
419 Decatur St, New Orleans
This program is free and open to the public.
Join us for this special history presentation as part of the Jean Lafitte National Historical Park & Preserve’s commemoration of the Battle of New Orleans.
Gene A. Smith, Professor, Department of History, Texas Christian University, discusses the Drummer Boy of New Orleans: Jordan Bankston Noble (1800-1890).
Ninety-year-old Jordan Bankston Noble died quietly at his children’s New Orleans’ home during the early morning hours of Friday, June 20, 1890. The following day, the New Orleans Daily Picayune sadly reported the “death of ‘the Drummer Boy of Chalmette,’” ran a woodcut picture of the “Colored Veteran of Four Wars,” and encouraged family and friends to attend his Saturday-afternoon funeral and to look on the white hair and “familiar face of ‘Old Jordan’” once last time.
The announcement stressed his patriotic service as Noble had fought in four wars—two as a slave (War of 1812 and Seminole War), and two as a free man (Mexican American War and the Civil War). Yet after his fighting days had passed, Noble contributed to the civic life of the New Orleans’ community, winning respect from members of both the black and white communities.
While his playing music provided Noble an entree into respectability and permitted him to hold tightly onto his military legacy as the drummer boy of the Battle of New Orleans, his intense patriotism to Louisiana and his country allowed Noble to navigate the perils associated with pre- and post-Civil War race relations. Ultimately, when discrimination and persecution came his way, Noble simply took out his drum and beat it away.
Fees
The program is free and open to the public.
Location
National Park Service French Quarter visitor center - 419 Decatur St, New Orleans, LA 70130
Latitude and Longitude 29.954795, -90.064743
Schedule
Date:
Time:
Duration:
12:00 noon to 1:00 pm Central Time
Event Type
- Talk