Norman, OK - Julia Anne Jordan, of Norman, age 98, passed away on March 30th, 2026. Julia was born in Joplin, Missouri in 1928 to John Ford Nickell and Nelle (Bruff) Nickell. She graduated from Tulsa Rogers High School in 1945 and attended the University of Tulsa from 1945 to 1947 and the University of Oklahoma from 1948-1950. She earned a Bachelor of Arts Degree from the University of Oklahoma in 1950, majoring in English with a minor in French. In 1965, Julia received a Master of Arts degree, also from the University of Oklahoma, majoring in Anthropology with a minor in Botany. She was a member of Phi Beta Kappa and Sigma Xi honour societies. She was married to William H. Jordan (Bill) for 67 years until Bill's passing in 2017.

Julia began her professional career at the University of Oklahoma in 1950. As a research anthropologist, she conducted extensive fieldwork among Indians of western Oklahoma as a part of the Doris Duke Indian Oral History Project at the University of Oklahoma in the 1960s. Later, at the Sam Noble Oklahoma Museum of Natural History, she served as a consultant and co-principal investigator for several anthropological projects. She became an expert in the ethnobotany of the Plains Apache (f Kiowa Apache) tribe of western Oklahoma, authoring the book "Plains Apache Ethnobotany", published in 2008. Julia retired from the museum in 1993. She donated Native American artifacts to the museum as well as many recorded conversations with Native American elders, that were part of her fieldwork in western Oklahoma in the 1960s.

Julia was also a world traveller and outdoor sports enthusiast. She spoke fluent Spanish and had a working knowledge of French and Portuguese. Her trips included Mexico, Brazil, Cuba, Ecuador, Peru, Costa Rica, Honduras, Tanzania, Europe, China and the Philippines. She was an avid camper, hiker, canoer, fisherman, and expert birdwatcher. She hiked Alaska's Chilkoot trail and canoed the Yukon River in Canada while in her fifties. She kept a detailed journal of every trip. She was an active member of the Oklahoma Native Plant society. Additionally, her hobbies included gardening, knitting, horseback riding, and archaeological digs.

Julia also loved animals and always had pets including dogs, cats, horses, a loggerhead shrike and even tarantulas. She was a Member of the First Presbyterian Church of Norman for over 75 years and served on a church mission trip to the Dominican Republic.

Julia was preceded in death by her husband: Bill, her parents, her sisters: Nelle Louise Taylor, Mary Margaret Wade, and Cora May Hawkins; and her daughter, Susan Kay Jordan. She is survived by her son, Jeffrey Scott Jordan (wife Rossann Mosher) of Denver, Colorado; grandchildren Susan Kristine Becker (husband Shane) of Rifle, Colorado; Dane Alexander Jordan of Denver, Colorado; and great grandchild, Lindon Merlin Becker of Rifle, Colorado.

Services are under the care of Havenbrook Funeral Home (3401 Havenbrook St., Norman). Viewing will be on Monday, April 6th, 2026, 4-7 PM.

Graveside services will be Tuesday, April 7th, 2026, 2 PM at I.O.O.F. Cemetery, Norman.

A Memorial Service/Celebration of Life will be held on Saturday, May 2nd, 2026 at the First Presbyterian Church of Norman (555 S. University Blvd, Norman, OK 73069) at 2 PM.

The Jordan Family would like to express its gratitude to the Rivermont Independent Living facility and all the staff that provided an excellent place to live for Julia during the past several years. The family also appreciated the care provided by Wings of Love Home Care and Frontier Hospice of Norman.