George Albert SLY

1858 - 1942  (83 years)

• Name	George Albert SLY
  Born	12 Apr 1858	Grand Ledge, Eaton, Michigan, United States
  Gender	Male
  _UID	284CA31A6DA8494F86B62BBE0A40EF8BC758
  Died	16 Mar 1942	Compton, Los Angeles, California, United States
  Buried	21 Mar 1942	Compton, Los Angeles, California, United States
  Person ID	I30	SteveParker
  Last Modified	9 Aug 2017

  
  

  Father	William Wesley SLY,   b. 22 Oct 1807, New York, United States ,   d. 11 Jan 1863, , Isabella, Michigan, United States  (Age 55 years)
  Mother	Elizabeth MORRIS,   b. Abt 1820, Ireland, Free State ,   d. 7 Feb 1879, Oakland, Michigan, United States  (Age ~ 59 years)
  Married	17 Jul 1842	Commerce, Oakland, Michigan, United States   [1]
  _UID	C665701DE5A95F4B86ED378630AB7A3CB1C0
  Notes	MI Genweb marriages MORRIS,SLY,ELIZABETH - MORRIS,WILLIAM WESLEY SLY,OAKLAND,--,,17 JUL 1842,--,--,--
  Family ID	F19	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

  
  

  Family	Catherine Helen HILDERBRAND,   b. 27 Jun 1862, Belle Plaine, Benton, Iowa, United States ,   d. 18 May 1928, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California, United States  (Age 65 years)
  Married	24 Dec 1879	Juniata, Adams, Nebraska, United States
  _UID	E3BF0D795A764A4CB00342F66F5A4DC5542E
  Children	1. Fred Chester SLY,   b. 14 Jul 1881, Juniata, Adams, Nebraska, United States ,   d. 27 Sep 1971, Montrose, Montrose, Colorado, United States  (Age 90 years)   2. Clint Lee SLY,   b. 22 Apr 1884, Erie, Neosha, Kansas, United States ,   d. 15 May 1955, Moab, Grand, Utah, United States  (Age 71 years)   3. Clyde William SLY,   b. 11 May 1886, Cozad, Dawson, Nebraska, United States ,   d. 7 Feb 1953, Compton, Los Angeles, California, United States  (Age 66 years)   4. Mabel Ruth SLY,   b. 9 May 1889, Cozad, Dawson, Nebraska, United States ,   d. 8 Dec 1971, Medford, Jackson, Oregon, United States  (Age 82 years)   5. Leafy Ellen SLY,   b. 2 Apr 1892, Cozad, Dawson, Nebraska, United States   6. Trixell Gladys SLY,   b. 7 May 1895, Cozad, Dawson, Nebraska, United States ,   d. 9 Dec 1928, Compton, Los Angeles, California, United States  (Age 33 years)   7. Frank Leuell SLY,   b. 2 Jul 1902, Pinon, Montrose, Colorado, United States ,   d. 1 Jan 1987, Deer Park, Harris,Texas, United States  (Age 84 years)
  Last Modified	29 Mar 2021
  Family ID	F29	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

  
  

• Notes

  Birthdate he gave himself was 2 April 1858. 1880 United States Federal Census Record about George A. Sly Name: George A. Sly Age: 23 Estimated birth year: abt 1857 Birthplace: Michigan Occupation: Carpenter Relationship to head-of-household: Self Home in 1880: Juniata, Adams, Nebraska Marital status: Married Race: White Gender: Male Spouse's name: Katie N. Sly Father's birthplace: NY Mother's birthplace: IRE note: Lester Sly (brother) living next door 1900 United States Federal Census Name: Geo A Sly Home in 1900: Pinon, Montrose, Colorado Age: 42 Estimated birth year: abt 1858 Birthplace: Michigan Relationship to head-of-house: Head Spouse's name: Katie W Race: White Occupation: carpenter Household Members: Name Age Geo A Sly 42 Katie W Sly 37 Ford C Sly 18 Clint C Sly 17 Clyde Sly 14 Mabel R Sly 11 Leafy H Sly 8 Taynel Sly 5 1910 United States Federal Census Name: George A Sly Age in 1910: 52 Estimated birth year: abt 1858 Birthplace: Michigan Relation to Head of House: Head Father's Birth Place: New York Mother's Birth Place: New York Spouse's name: Kate N Home in 1910: Nucla, Montrose, Colorado Marital Status: Married Race: White Gender: Male Household Members: Name Age George A Sly 52 Kate N Sly 48 Clint L Sly 25 Leafy E Sly 18 Tripell g Sly 14 Frank L Sly 7 1920 United States Federal Census Name: George A Sly Home in 1920: Nucla, Montrose, Colorado Age: 61 years Estimated birth year: abt 1859 Birthplace: Michigan Relation to Head of House: Head Spouse's name: Kate N Father's Birth Place: New York Mother's Birth Place: Michigan Marital Status: Married Race: White Sex: Male Home owned: Own Able to read: Yes Able to Write: Yes Image: 701 Household Members: Name Age George A Sly 61 Kate N Sly 57 Frank L Sly 17 1930 United States Federal Census Name: George H Sly Home in 1930: Compton, Los Angeles, California Age: 72 Estimated birth year: abt 1858 Birthplace: Michigan Relation to Head of House: Head Race: White Occupation: builder/contracter Military Service: no, Rent/home value: Age at first marriage: 22, Parents' birthplace: NY, NY Household Members: Name Age George H Sly 72 widowed builder/contracter Frank L Sly 24 single Mechanic/garage LIFE STORY OF GEORGE ALBERT SLY I, George A. Sly, have been asked by my children to write a history of my life as I remember it. As all of our family records have been lost, I will have to depend on my memory, When I was about five years old, we lived on a farm near St. Louis, Michigan and about that time father died leaving mother with six children and none of them old enough to take the responsibility of providing a living forthe family. After the funeral, the neighbors came in to see if they could help solve the problem for mother. The children were five boys and one girl, she being the baby and I was next to her. I went to live with a neighbor named Allen, and mother went to live with her brother near Pontiac. I was with Allens about a year when mother's brother died and again we were destitute when a man by the name of Exelby (or Axford) wanted me to live with him. I was then about 8 years old and able to do some work. Exelby lived on a farm in Clinton Co. (MI) and we stayed there about a year then moved to Saginaw Co. where his brother had a sawmill and he joined him in the mill. I helped around the mill. They had a young man as engineer and he had TB and got too weak to work, so I was to help him. He took all the pains to teach me how to fire the boiler and run the engine and pumps. Soon after he was taken much worse and died and then I was put in charge. After that time Exelby got the wandering blues and he made up a party and then went to Nebraska and filed a homestead and in the spring of 1872 Exelby and another man chartered a car and left for Lincoln, Nebraska and Hebron, and I went with the car as we had two teams of horses to look after when we arrived in Lincoln. We found the ........and we loaded the wagon and started for Hebron. The first thing was to build a place to live in which we did by digging a dugout and a sod house. This was April 1872 and that year the B&M railroad built the road from Lincoln to Kearney and the U.S. established a mail route to Red Cloud, 120 miles south, and Exelby took the contract to carry the mail two trips a week for a year and after a few trips I was put on to run the route. I had a pair of ponies anda spring wagon with........which was very good during the summer, but in the winter was tough and I had no winter woolen clothes on, overshoes, no overcoat but I got through and at the end of the contract, I had worked out a few dollars for myself. I paid extra both ways and a great many ..... of...... both ways. When I made the fast trip I got ready to go on my own as I lived with Exelby for several years and he had given me no schooling and lots of chores so one night I slipped out with a few dollars and hit east on the railroad and ................... I saw some men loading some wagons with machinery and I asked for the boss. He was pointed out to me and I told him I wanted a job. He called the foreman, Mr. George Carr, and said can you use this boy? Carr asked me if I could drive a team. I said, yes. All right, Carr said and I worked for him three years and I went to school winters and did chores for my board. Then there was a flouring mill being built a few miles from there and I got a job there and the millwright took a shine to me and took pains to see me put over the care of the tools. About a year after the mill was in operation, it changed hands which left us out and I drifted back to Juniata and put in the winter going to school. The next summer I went to work for a company, James & ...... who was running a general store, a grain elevator and a sawmill in Juniata and worked for them two years and during that time I met the finest girl, my future wife, and also where one of my brothers was in Michigan and in early winter went to visit them, coming back the next spring and at Christmas time we were married, December 14, 1879. I will remember the large one room log house where father died with a large fireplace in one end withthe drain crank hinged at one side where the meals were cooked, with the wide mantle above the fireplace on which was the family Bible with its well worn pages and at one side the old weight clock which always recorded the time. These were the happiest days of my childhood and the only happy house I ever knew until I moved and had a home of my own. The years I was with the Exelbys family, I was never happy as they were very cruel and brutal to me and as I write this for my children I must add that we have raised a family that I am proud of, Each and every one of them a respected citizen.

  
  

• Sources

  [S33] marriages, Oakland County, Michigan.