| Mount Jordan | |
| Elevation Ft: | 13343 |
| Elevation Ref: | [1] |
| Prominence Ft: | 613 |
| Isolation Mi: | 1.70 |
| Isolation Ref: | [2] |
| Parent Peak: | Thunder Mountain (13,523 ft) |
| Etymology: | David Starr Jordan |
| Listing: | Sierra Peaks Section |
| Map: | California#USA |
| Map Size: | 260 |
| Label Position: | bottom |
| Location: | Kings Canyon National Park Sequoia National Park Tulare County, California, U.S. |
| Range: | Sierra Nevada Kings–Kern Divide |
| Coordinates: | 36.6822°N -118.4498°W |
| Coordinates Ref: | [3] |
| Topo: | USGS Mount Brewer |
| Rock: | granitic |
| First Ascent: | 1925, Norman Clyde |
Mount Jordan is a remote 13343feet mountain summit located on the Kings–Kern Divide of the Sierra Nevada mountain range, in Tulare County of northern California.[3] It is situated on the shared boundary of Kings Canyon National Park with Sequoia National Park, southwest of Mount Stanford, and one mile west of Mount Genevra, which is the nearest neighbor. Topographic relief is significant as the north aspect rises 3313abbr=offNaNabbr=off above Lake Reflection in 1.3 mile. Mount Jordan ranks as the 84th highest summit in California,[2] and the fifth-highest peak on the Kings–Kern Divide.[1]
The mountain's name was proposed by the Sierra Club in 1925 to honor David Starr Jordan (1851–1931), the founding president of Stanford University.[3] [4] This mountain's name was officially adopted in 1926 by the United States Board on Geographic Names.[3]
Dr. Jordan, with a party of Stanford associates, spent several weeks of 1899 in the Bubbs Creek region, exploring and mapping Ouzel Creek, to which he gave its name, and he climbed Mount Stanford on August 16, 1899.[5]
In July 2020, the president of the Sierra Club denounced Jordan for being one of the "vocal advocates for white supremacy and its pseudo-scientific arm, eugenics." The president also announced, "We will also spend the next year studying our history and determining which of our monuments need to be renamed or pulled down entirely." It is not yet clear on how such a reassessment would affect the status of Mount Jordan, which the club had helped to name.[6]
The probable first ascent of the lower north summit was made July 15, 1925, by Norman Clyde, who is credited with 130 first ascents, most of which were in the Sierra Nevada.
Established climbing routes:[7]
Mount Jordan is located in an alpine climate zone.[8] Most weather fronts originate in the Pacific Ocean, and travel east toward the Sierra Nevada mountains. As fronts approach, they are forced upward by the peaks, causing them to drop their moisture in the form of rain or snowfall onto the range (orographic lift). Precipitation runoff from the mountain drains north to Bubbs Creek, and south into headwaters of the Kern River.