James Sloan

James Sloan

• Father: William Sloan
• Mother: Margaret Esler

• James Sloan was born in August 1829 in County Antrim, Northern Ireland, near Belfast.
• James Sloan served in the US Army for five years following the Mexican-American War. He enlisted in Buffalo as a private on 7 June 1852, in Company C, 4th Infantry Regiment, and was discharged on 7 June 1857 at the expiration of his service. He served as a private at Fort Steilacoom, on Puget Sound in Washington Territory.
• He married Annie Eliza Foster, daughter of Cornelius Foster and Mary Carr, on 7 July 1859 in Drummondville, Welland County, Ontario, Canada, at All Saints Anglican Church The marriage was witnessed by Charlotte Maria Foster.
• James Sloan and Annie Eliza Foster appeared in the US federal census of 1 June 1860 in Black Rock PO, Buffalo, Erie County, New York. Other members of the household included William C. Sloan. The surname is recorded as "Slone," and nothing more is known of young William.
• He was an engineer, according to the 1860 census.
• James Sloan and Annie Eliza Foster, appeared in the US federal census of 1 June 1870 in Vallejo, Solano County, California. Other members of the household included Mary Helen Sloan, Margaret Esler Sloan and Sarah Jane Sloan.
• He was a laborer, according to the 1870 census.
• James Sloan and Annie Eliza Foster appeared in the US federal census of 1 June 1880 in Vallejo, Solano County, California, at Maryland Street. Other members of the household included Mary Helen Sloan, Margaret Esler Sloan, Sarah Jane Sloan and James Esler Sloan.
• He was a laborer, according to the 1880 census.
• James Sloan and Annie Eliza Foster appeared in the US federal census of 1 June 1900 in Vallejo, Solano County, California, at 945 York. Other members of the household included Margaret Esler Sloan and Otto J. Johnson. Also in the household Johnson grandchildren, not yet recorded.
• He was a laborer, according to the 1900 census.
• James Sloan and Annie Eliza Foster appeared in the US federal census of 15 April 1910 in Vallejo, California. Other members of the household included Margaret Esler Sloan, Otto J. Johnson and Esler Johnson. Also in the household are other Johnson grandchildren, not yet recorded.
• The following appeared in the History of Solano and Napa Counties, California, published in 1912:
  James Sloan
       By virtue of a life of honorable action, Mr. Sloan is enabled to spend in retrospection many moments free from regret, secure in the knowledge that at all times his efforts were directed by conscientious ambition and sterling integrity. He has materially aided in the development of Vallejo, having resided in that community for the past forty-five years, and enjoys the universal respect of his fellow-citizens.
       Born August 2, 1829, near Belfast, County Antrim, Ireland, James Sloan is the son of William and Margaret (Esler) Sloan. In 1852 he immigrated to Buffalo, N. Y., and for a short time clerked in a store. In the fall of that year he enlisted in Company C, Fourth United States Infantry, serving in subsequent Indians wars in Washington territory. In 1857 he was honorably discharged, being physically unfit for duty, having received several wounds, including an injury in his right breast. Upon his return to Buffalo he engaged in the grocery business, and while in that city witnessed the passing of Abraham Lincoln's funeral train in 1865.
       Mr. Sloan was united in marriage July 7, 1859, in Niagara Falls, Canada, with Miss Annie Eliza Fosler [sic], a native of that city, and a daughter of Cornelius Fosler [sic], whose birth occurred in Somerset. England, and who became a carpenter and builder in Niagara Falls, Canada. His wife, formerly Mary Kerr, was born in the north of Ireland and both passed away in Canada. Three daughters were born to them, Mrs. Sloan being the eldest. In 1867 Mr. and Mrs. Sloan removed to Vallejo, Cal., where the former was employed in the Mare Island Navy Yard until he retired, and with his wife is now residing in their comfortable home at No. 945 York street.
       Four children were born to Mr. and Mrs. Sloan: Mary Helen, now Mrs. H. W. Clark, of Globe. Ariz., who has one son, Henry; Margaret Esler, wife of Capt. Otto J. Johnson, who has three children: Julius, a graduate of Vallejo high school and now employed in the auditing department of the Southern Pacific Railroad, Harold and Esler; Sarah Jane, now Mrs. George L. Rogers of Edenvale, Cal; and James Esler, of Oxnard, Cal., who has three daughters, Bernice Helen, Annie Elizabeth and Ardis. Mr. Sloan is a stanch Republican and, with his wife, is a member of the Vallejo Episcopal Church.
• James Sloan died circa 23 September 1915 in Solano County, California.
• Annie Eliza Foster became a widow at his death.
• The following appeared on 3 October 1915 in the San Jose Mercury Herald: Mrs. George L. Rodgers of Edenvale has the sympathy of her many friends over the death of her father, James Sloan, a retired pioneer citizen of Vallejo. Mr. Sloan passed away at the family residence Thursday evening, September 25 [sic/], at the advanced age of 86 years.
       And in the same issue: Mrs. George L. Rogers of Edenvale, has the sympathies of her many friends over the death of her father, James Sloan, a retired pioneer citizen of Vallejo. Mr. Sloan was buried from the family residence in Vallejo, Sunday, Sepetember 26, at the convenience of the family.

• Last Edited: 15 Mar 2014