Notable people · Diplomat · Humanitarian
Jesse B. Jackson
Born in Paulding, Jackson was the U.S. consul at Aleppo during the Armenian genocide. His reports described the killings and he ran relief for about 150,000 refugees.
At a glance
- Born
- 1871
- Died
- 1947-12-04
- Known as
- Diplomat, Humanitarian
- Organizations
- US Consular Service
Life story
Jesse Benjamin Jackson was born in Paulding, Ohio, in 1871. He entered the U.S. consular service and was posted as consul in Aleppo, in the Ottoman Empire, in 1908.
During the Armenian genocide Aleppo lay on the deportation routes. Jackson wrote dispatches calling Ottoman policy a plan to wipe out the Armenian people. By September 1915 he estimated about one million had been killed, and he reported on the camp at Meskene, where he said about 60,000 Armenians were buried.
He handled relief funds that began at $100,000 and supported about 150,000 refugees, and he is credited with saving thousands. He later served in Italy (1923-1928) and Canada, retired in 1935 and died in Columbus on December 4, 1947. Lebanon gave him its Order of Merit.
Timeline
- 1871: Born in Paulding, Ohio (Paulding, OH) source
- 1908: Becomes consul in Aleppo (Aleppo) source
- 1915-09: Estimates about one million Armenians killed (Aleppo) source
- 1923: Consular posts in Italy (to 1928) (Italy) source
- 1935: Retires from consular service source
- 1947-12-04: Dies in Columbus (Columbus, OH) source
What Jesse is known for
- U.S. consul at Aleppo from 1908; documented the Armenian genocide
- Managed relief for about 150,000 refugees
- Consular dispatches on the Armenian genocide (Aleppo)
Honors and things named for them
- Order of Merit, Lebanon
Ohio places
Where Jesse B. Jackson was born, lived, worked and is remembered, with the ZIP code, town and county pages for each.
- Born: Paulding, Paulding County ZIP 45879 · Paulding · Paulding County
- Lived: Columbus, Franklin County ZIP 43215 · Columbus · Franklin County
Further reading
Sources
Confidence. Medium: the main facts were confirmed, but some details (often an address or ZIP code) were not.
- Wikipedia: Jesse B. Jackson birth Paulding; Aleppo consul; reports; relief funds; later posts; Order of Merit; death 1947 Columbus