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William Milligan Sloane

1850 – 1928

United States historian

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About William Milligan Sloane

Lived 1850 – 1928 (aged 77). William Milligan Sloane was an American historian, university teacher, writer and classical philologist.

William Milligan Sloane (November 12, 1850 – September 12, 1928) was an American educator and historian.

Career William Milligan Sloane was born in Richmond, Ohio on November 12, 1850. He graduated from Columbia College of Columbia University, where he was a member of the Philolexian Society, in 1868, and afterward was employed as instructor in classics at the Newell School in Pittsburgh until 1872. From 1872 to 1876 he studied at the universities of Berlin and Leipzig. He studied history under Mommsen and Droysen, and much of the time he worked as private secretary to George Bancroft, United States Minister at Berlin. He received a doctorate from the University of Leipzig, with a dissertation entitled The Poet Labid: His Life, Times, and Fragmentary Writings, which was published in 1877. The published version of Sloane's dissertation specifically mentions that he studied under Fleischer, Krehl, and at Leipzig.

Sloane was a professor of Latin (1877–1883) and subsequently History (1883–1896) at Princeton University, when it was still known as the College of New Jersey. While there, he edited the Princeton Review (1885–1888).

He was portrayed in the 1984 NBC mini-series The First Olympics: Athens 1896 by David Ogden Stiers.

Personal life Sloane married Mary Espey Johnston on December 27, 1877.

Publications The Poet Labid: His Life, Times, and Fragmentary Writings (1877) Life and Work of James Renwick Wilson Sloane, his father (1888) The French War and the Revolution (1893) The Life of Napoleon Bonaparte (four volumes, 1896; revised and enlarged edition, 1911) Life of James McCosh (1896) The French Revolution and Religious Reform (1901) Party Government in the United States of America (1914)

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Important facts

Birth century
Nationality
Education
Columbia University, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Leipzig University
Employers
Princeton University, Columbia University
Awards
Royal Order of the Polar Star
Also known as
William M. Sloane, William Sloane, Wm. M. Sloane

People in William Milligan Sloane's life

Named in this biography and alive at the same time

Contemporaries

People whose lives overlapped William Milligan Sloane's

Frequently asked questions

Who was William Milligan Sloane?

United States historian (1850–1928)

When was William Milligan Sloane born?

William Milligan Sloane was born on 12 November 1850 in Richmond.

When did William Milligan Sloane die?

William Milligan Sloane died on 12 September 1928 in Bay Head.

What was William Milligan Sloane's occupation?

William Milligan Sloane was a historian, university teacher, writer and classical philologist.

What nationality was William Milligan Sloane?

William Milligan Sloane was American.

Sources & further reading

· Wikipedia: William Milligan Sloane

· Wikidata: Q511155

· DBpedia: William Milligan Sloane

Cite this page

APA: Biography.guide. (2026). William Milligan Sloane. https://biography.guide/william-milligan-sloane/

MLA: "William Milligan Sloane." Biography.guide, https://biography.guide/william-milligan-sloane/.

Chicago: "William Milligan Sloane." Biography.guide. https://biography.guide/william-milligan-sloane/.

Data last updated: 2026-09-21 · Spot an error? Report a correction.

Portrait: Wikimedia Commons · author & licence

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