Marjorie Jordan

Marjorie Jordan Obituary

Marjorie Jordan passed away on July 2, 2026, at the age of 78. She was a gifted artist whose keen eye for beauty shaped both her creative work and her professional life.

Born in Boston, Massachusetts, Marjorie spent the first six months of her life there before her family began a remarkable journey abroad. Over the years, her family lived in Venezuela, Peru, Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador, Panama, Türkiye, and the Azores, before returning to the United States and settling in Sarasota, Florida. As an adult, she lived briefly in Los Angeles, California before making Atlanta, Georgia her home for the remainder of her life.

In the early 1970s, Marjorie served as a photographer, contributor, and editor of The Great Speckled Bird, an influential underground newspaper in Atlanta, which documented the civil rights movement and the city's vibrant countercultural community. Her contributions helped preserve moments from a transformative era in Atlanta's history. In 2019, Marjorie provided an interview about her experiences with the Bird as part of an oral history of the newspaper now archived at Georgia State University.

Marjorie's passion for art remained a constant throughout her life. Decades after her work with The Great Speckled Bird, her photography and paintings continued to be recognized and exhibited, including in the Atlanta Photography Group's 2022 exhibition, Postcards From Here, where her images reflect the quiet beauty and intimacy of everyday life. She painted in oil and watercolor; drew with oil pastels, soft pastels, and graphite; and created works in both black & white and color photography. From 1983 through 2022, her creative work was featured in numerous exhibitions, juried shows, and art festivals. Her artistic legacy also includes two oil paintings, entitled White Chrysanthemums and Take Heart in an Orange, which remain in the permanent collection of the H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center & Research Institute at the University of South Florida in Tampa, Florida.

Alongside her artistic pursuits, Marjorie built a distinguished career as a paralegal in Atlanta, where she worked with several respected law firms. She brought to her profession the same careful observation, precision, and attention to detail that defined her work as both a painter and photographer.

Marjorie is survived by her daughter, Maggie McClatchey; her son, Wilson Wise, his wife, Stephanie; her granddaughter, Chelsea; her brother, James "Big Bro" Jordan and his wife, Nancy; her nephew, Keith, his wife Dani, and their sons, Roan and Wolf; and her sister, Elizabeth Woodsmall. She was preceded in death by her mother, Margaret Warson, and her brother, William Woodsmall.

Family and friends are invited to gather on Thursday, August 6, 2026, at A.S. Turner and Sons (2773 N. Decatur Rd., Decatur, GA 30033) from 1:00-4:00 p.m.

In lieu of flowers, the family kindly requests that donations be made in Marjorie's memory to The Nature Conservancy.