John & Mary Slatter's story

1861 UK Census for 55 Leman St. in Whitechapel, London

The life of hubby's great-granddad, John Slatter (1838-1901), spanned two continents. He was born in Oxfordshire, England; lived in London for years; and somehow got to Cleveland, Ohio by 1889, where he was a wallpaper cleaner and hanger.

He had two wives, and three of his six children (John, Henry, and Albert) grew up to become celebrated military bandmasters in Canada (see listing of posts, below). One of his grandchildren (Edgar J. Wood) was also musical, apparently inspired or encouraged by Mary Shehen (or Shehan) Slatter, John Slatter's first wife. (See below for links to my posts about Mary Shehan.)

Where/when did Mary, John's first wife, die? How did he meet his second wife (Louisa A.M.), whose maiden name is still a mystery? And what happened to his first-born son Thomas John Slatter? He must have died young because he was in the 1861 Census but not in the 1871 Census.

Children of John Slatter and Mary Shehen Slatter: 

Thomas John Slatter (1860-?), Albert William Slatter (1862-1935), John Daniel Slatter (1864-1954), Henry Arthur Slatter (1866-1942), Adelaide Mary Ann Slatter (1868-1947), and Mary Slatter (1869-1925)

Here are my posts about John Slatter and his children:

• Seeking Slatter descendants (summary of John Slatter's progeny)
• John Slatter's grave in Cleveland, Ohio, includes his exact birth date
• Who was Louisa A.M. Slatter? (what I know about her occupation, obit, burial)
• John Slatter died in Cleveland (in 1901, info about his obit and cemetery)
• Mary Slatter marries James Edgar Wood (John Slatter's youngest daughter marries in Toledo, Ohio in 1898) AND their marriage cert from 21 September 1898.
• John Slatter's father, was a cook at Christ Church College, Oxfordshire (according to research by Slatter genealogist in UK). And in case you want more confusion, John's father was also named John Slatter. So there.
• John Slatter's Cleveland work (Cleveland city directory shows him as paperhanger/cleaner) 
• John Slatter's Cleveland cemetery card (before I knew exactly where he was buried)
• John Slatter and Mary Shehen's marriage cert (married in Whitechapel in 1859, son Thomas John was born in 1860). John Slatter's father John, also a cook, was listed as deceased when they married on Dec. 18, 1859.
• Quick summary of John Slatter Sr's dates and children's names. 
• Saluting the Slatters on Canada Day, 2014 with photos of WWI badges from Canada.



Newspaper item promoting Capt. Slatter and the 48th Highlanders

• Ada Mary Ann Slatter marries James Sills Baker in Cleveland.

Posts about Captain John D. Slatter (we call him "Captain Jack," informally of course):

• Band Sergeant at age 11, in the Boys' Band of the training ship H.M. Goliath
• Three Slatter brothers, all Canadian bandmasters 
• Captain John Slatter, bandmaster (of the 48th Highlanders Regiment in Toronto) 
• The musical Slatter brothers (a bit about the bandmaster careers of John Slatter's 3 musical sons)
• Capt. Slatter's obit (he was quite a famous bandmaster, as obit explains)
• Capt. Slatter at Camp Borden in Canada (photo and info about his military uniform, identified by one of my fabulous readers)
• Remembrance Day: Capt. John Slatter (summary of his military career)
• Captain John Slatter's collection of Canadian military badges (more and more of his badges)
• Capt. Jack Slatter and the 48th Highlanders of Toronto (book found through WorldCat) 
• Tom Clark McBride's reminiscences of musical training under Capt. John Slatter at Niagara-on-the-Lake and in Toronto during the 1940s.
• The Slatter family was evidently quite poor, which is why John, Albert, and Henry were aboard the Training Ships Goliath and Exmouth. 
• Visiting the 48th Highlanders Museum in Toronto to see Capt. Slatter's medals and memorabilia.





Above, Captain John Slatter leading the band in Toronto; below, at Camp Borden in WWI

Obit of Henry Arthur Slatter (name is incorrect in obit)

Posts about Mary Shehan Slatter and family:

• Mary's parents, John and Mary Shehan, were born in Ireland around 1801. By 1841, they were living in Marylebone, London.
• Mary Shehan (the younger) married John Slatter in Whitechapel in 1859. At this time, Mary's father was working as a bricklayer, according to the marriage record.

Mary Shehan's mother and father were living in Marylebone in 1851, according to the UK census. Her dad, John, was a laborer and her mother Mary was a laundress. Also in the household: Thomas, age 17, Michael, age 11, and niece Bridget Waddinger, b. in Ireland (age 6).

By 1861, John and Mary were still in the same place (20 Gray's Buildings) and only their son Michael, age 21, was living with them. In the 1871 census, John and Mary were still in Gray's Buildings in Marylebone, he a laborer and she in laundry. What became of John and Mary Shehan?

I joined the British Isles Genealogy group on Facebook last year, and posted a request for advice about tracing the Shehans back to their Irish roots. Members suggested I contact St. James's Roman Catholic Church because it's located very close to where the Shehans lived in London. Unfortunately, the church secretary replied that they have no record of the Shehans--but she recommended that I contact Our Lady of the Rosary Church. I e-mailed in July, 2013, but heard nothing. In 2014, I'll write a snail mail.