J. T. Sloan Correspondence and Other Materials
The first section of this collection houses letters written to J. T. Sloan regarding events at home. Although the majority of Sloan's correspondents lived in Nashville, he also received letters from friends and family in Murfreesboro (Tenn.), Birmingham (Ala.), Memphis (Tenn.), and Atlanta (Ga.). The second section houses letters that J. T. Sloan wrote describing his life in camp and in the field, reporting on family members and friends also serving in the Army, and expressing his desire to return home soon. Among Sloan's most frequent correspondents are Anna (Toon) Sloan, Emma I. Sloan, Emma D. Sloan, John W. Barnes, Georgie Brown, Inez West, Celine Wright, Bertha Cox, David Spence, Gladys Glover, Nell D. Watkins, William J. Bill Wood, Ione Henderson (1899-), Frances Brielmaire, Pete Brielmaire, Estelle Brielmaire (1891-1967), Mary Brielmaire (1894-1968), Edith Brielmaire (1898-1993), and Joseph B. Joe Branham (1895-1993). Researchers should note that Sloan corresponded with two women named Emma Sloan: his sister, Emma I. Sloan (who signs herself Emma) and his sister-in-law, Emma Davidson (Brown) Sloan (who signs herself Emma D.)
Also included are transcriptions of some of Sloan's letters home in both paper and digital format, a partial index to these transcriptions, and a panoramic picture of Sloan's unit taken at Camp Sevier, South Carolina in March of 1918.
Dates
- 1914 December 25-1920 January 13, 1938 July 4-11
Conditions Governing Access
Collections are stored offsite and must be requested in advance. See www.special.lib.utk.edu for detailed information. Collections must be requested through a registered Special Collections research account.
Conditions Governing Use
The UT Libraries claims only physical ownership of most material in the collections. Persons wishing to broadcast or publish this material must assume all responsibility for identifying and satisfying any claimants on www.special.lib.utk.edu for detailed information. Collections must be requested through a registered Special Collections research account.
Extent
6.65 Linear Feet (10 Boxes and 1 Panorama)
Abstract
The first section of this collection houses letters written to J. T. Sloan regarding events at home. Although the majority of Sloan's correspondents lived in Nashville, he also received letters from friends and family in Murfreesboro (Tenn.), Birmingham (Ala.), Memphis (Tenn.), and Atlanta (Ga.). The second section houses letters that J. T. Sloan wrote describing his life in camp and in the field, reporting on family members and friends also serving in the Army, and expressing his desire to return home soon. Researchers should note that Sloan corresponded with two women named Emma Sloan: his sister, Emma I. Sloan (who signs herself Emma) and his sister-in-law, Emma Davidson (Brown) Sloan (who signs herself Emma D.). Also included are transcriptions of some of Sloan's letters home in both paper and digital format, a partial index to these transcriptions, and a panoramic picture of Sloan's unit taken at Camp Sevier, South Carolina in March of 1918.
Biographical/Historical Note
James Theodore Sloan (known to family and friends as Theodore or Hink) was born to James Theodore and Anna Dorcas (Toon) Sloan in Nashville, Tennessee on November 2, 1895. He was the youngest of six children, including Ida May (Sloan) Bush (1881-1927), Warren Barnes (1883-1959), Emma Isabella (1886-1966), Sarah McIntire Sallie (Sloan) Ozanne (1889-1973), and David Toon (1892-1981). Theodore Sloan attended Montgomery Bell Academy and worked at odd jobs in Tennessee, Oklahoma, and Texas before joining the National Guard on February 22, 1916. He was stationed at the International Bridge at Eagle Pass, Texas with Company H of the First Tennessee Infantry until March of 1917. The First Tennessee Infantry became the 115th Field Artillery on September 14, 1917 and was sent to Greeneville, South Carolina to train. They were dispatched to Europe in May of 1918 and landed in France in June of 1918. Sloan began his tour in the Toul Sector and saw action in the St. Mihiel Offensive and the Meuse-Argonne Campaign. After the war ended, he was stationed in France and Luxemburg.
Sloan returned to the United States in early 1919 and was formally discharged from the Army on April 12. After a brief period working in the oil fields of Texas, he returned to Nashville where he lived with his mother and sister Emma on Colorado Avenue. Sloan began working for the Chattanooga & St. Louis Railroad as a fireman in 1920. He became an engineer in 1940 and later worked for the Louisville & Nashville Railroad. He retired in 1964. Sloan married Frances Belle (Smith) Faulkner (widow of Thomas Clay Faulkner), who he had met through social activities with the Masons, in the 1930s. She had three children from her previous marriage, Dorris Clay (1918-1979), Mary Ellen (Faulkner) Brierly Geis Turner (1922-2009), and Margaret Tigret (Faulkner) Charles Downing (1926-1995), who regarded Sloan simply as their mother's husband. His step-grandchildren, however, knew him as their grandfather. Theodore Sloan died on June 2, 1983 after having been confined to bed for several years.
Arrangement
This collection consists of eleven boxes.
Acquisition Note
Frank F. Turner donated these materials to Special Collections in November of 2010.
Repository Details
Part of the Betsey B. Creekmore Special Collections and University Archives, University of Tennessee, Knoxville Repository