James Withers Sloss (April 7, 1820 – May 4, 1890) was a planter,

industrialist A business magnate, also known as an industrialist or tycoon, is a person who is a powerful entrepreneur and investor who controls, through personal enterprise ownership or a dominant shareholding position, a firm or industry whose goods or ser ...

, and the founder of the

Sloss Furnaces Sloss Furnaces is a National Historic Landmark in Birmingham, Alabama in the United States. It operated as a pig iron-producing blast furnace from 1882 to 1971. After closing, it became one of the first industrial sites (and the only blast furnac ...

, and a leading figure in the early development of

Birmingham, Alabama Birmingham ( ) is a city in the north central region of Alabama, United States. It is the county seat of Jefferson County, Alabama, Jefferson County. The population was 200,733 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the List ...

Early life

Sloss was born Limestone County in northern

Alabama Alabama ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South, Deep Southern regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gu ...

. His parents were Scotch-Irish. Though he had little formal education, he bought a store in

Athens, Alabama Athens is a city in and the county seat of Limestone County, in the U.S. state of Alabama; it is included in the Huntsville-Decatur-Albertville, AL Combined Statistical Area. As of the 2020 census, the population of the city is 25,406. Hist ...

. By successfully handling his store and his plantation, he quickly became one of the richest men in the state. After serving as a

colonel Colonel ( ; abbreviated as Col., Col, or COL) is a senior military Officer (armed forces), officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries, a colon ...

in the

Confederate Army The Confederate States Army (CSA), also called the Confederate army or the Southern army, was the military land force of the Confederate States of America (commonly referred to as the Confederacy) during the American Civil War (1861–1865), fi ...

during the

Civil War A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same Sovereign state, state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies.J ...

, he became president of the railroad line between

Nashville, Tennessee Nashville, often known as Music City, is the capital and List of municipalities in Tennessee, most populous city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County in Middle Tennessee, locat ...

and

Decatur, Alabama Decatur () is the largest city and county seat of Morgan County, Alabama, Morgan County (with a portion also in Limestone County, Alabama, Limestone County) in the U.S. state of Alabama. Nicknamed "The River City," it is located in North Alabam ...

. He became a leading figure in encouraging Alabama's industrial development after the Civil War, and in 1871 he persuaded the

Louisville and Nashville Railroad The Louisville and Nashville Railroad , commonly called the L&N, was a Class I railroad that operated freight and passenger services in the southeast United States. Chartered by the Commonwealth of Kentucky in 1850, the road grew into one of ...

to finish a line of railroad track between Birmingham and Decatur.

Work in Birmingham

Sloss knew that all of the ingredients needed to make

pig iron Pig iron, also known as crude iron, is an intermediate good used by the iron industry in the production of steel. It is developed by smelting iron ore in a blast furnace. Pig iron has a high carbon content, typically 3.8–4.7%, along with si ...

were present in Birmingham. Along with Henry F. DeBardeleben and James Aldrich, Sloss formed the Pratt Coal and Coke Company. It later became the largest mining operation in the area, the remnants of which today include the

Sloss Mines The Sloss Mines are a group of mines in southwestern Jefferson County, Alabama, United States. They were established by the Sloss Iron and Steel Company and its successor, the Sloss-Sheffield Iron and Steel Company, at the southern end of Red Mo ...

. Through the work of the company, Sloss became the first person to show that pig iron could be made in Birmingham purely from Alabama's

iron ore Iron ores are rocks and minerals from which metallic iron can be economically extracted. The ores are usually rich in iron oxides and vary in color from dark grey, bright yellow, or deep purple to rusty red. The iron is usually found in the f ...

, coke, and

limestone Limestone is a type of carbonate rock, carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material Lime (material), lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different Polymorphism (materials science) ...

.History – Sloss Industries Corporation Newsletter
/ref> Again working in conjunction with DeBardeleben, Sloss founded a furnace company in 1880 and started construction in 1881. It opened in 1882 under the name of the "City Furnaces," though it is today known as

. Sloss retired in 1886. He also served as the president of the Birmingham water works.

Legacy

Sloss's success in bringing a railroad to Birmingham transformed the new community into a thriving city. Because of the deal that Sloss brokered with them, the

invested $30 million (~$ in ) in mines, steamships, and other Alabama industries in the 1870s. Sloss was so influential in the development of the city of Birmingham that the Birmingham press suggested in 1881 that he be elected the state Governor: He is buried in Birmingham's Oak Hill Cemetery.

References

External links

Sloss Industries History Page
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sloss, James Businesspeople from Birmingham, Alabama People from Limestone County, Alabama American manufacturing businesspeople American railway entrepreneurs American people in rail transportation 19th-century American planters 1820 births 1890 deaths American people of Scotch-Irish descent Confederate States Army officers People of Alabama in the American Civil War