When it opened in the 1870s, Forest Home Cemetery was designed to be park-like, following a new trend in cemetery design — the rural cemetery movement, or “Garden Cemetery.” Many naturalistic monuments in the cemetery, such as carved tree trunks and logs, reflect this return-to-nature aesthetic. Sara Spencer Sloan and Junius Sloan’s monument, a large, rough-hewn, red-granite boulder inlaid with a metal plaque, particularly stands out as an ideal reflection of the beauty of nature.
Sara was the daughter of the famous Platt Rogers Spencer who, in the 1840s, developed a new style of penmanship, the Spencerian script. Spencerian script enabled writers to keep their pen on the paper longer by connecting the strokes of letters. The script was designed to make writing both quicker and more legible than previously elaborate styles of penmanship like English roundhand script.
In particular, this new style was meant to make business correspondence more efficient while still being pleasing. Platt was said to have been inspired by objects in his environment such as pebbles in streams, or rounded seeds. Platt started a school to train teachers and calligraphers in order to promote this new style of writing across the United States and abroad.
President James Garfield was an advocate of Spencerian script, saying it had been inspired by the “lines of beauty as drawn by the hand of nature,” and that it was “the pride of our country and the model of our schools.”
While Platt’s sons are often credited with making Spencerian script popular, his daughter, Sara (said to have been the finest female penman at the time), was instrumental in establishing the script in America. She had a particularly close relationship with her father and is believed to have been more knowledgeable about his methods than her brothers.
Spencerian script was widespread until 1925 when the Palmer Method, thought to be simpler, eclipsed it. Around that time, Spencerian script was also no longer preferred for business correspondence as typewriters had become more popular and prevalent.
Already established as a teacher in the Spencerian method, Sara met and married Junius Sloan in 1858 in Kewanee, Illinois. Junius was a self-taught painter who began his career as a sign-painter and portrait artist. Like Sara’s father, Junius was inspired by nature. Growing up, Junius had been a neighbor of the Spencers. Platt recognized Junius’ artistic talents early and encouraged him to pursue them. As a young man, Junius traveled extensively in the eastern United States looking for “heads to paint.”
At one point, he opened a portrait studio in Princeton, Illinois saying that the prospects were good because “…there is wealth, taste, and a lack of pictures,” but soon he was back on the road, even working in a New York City studio for several months.
Around this time, Junius was an associate of Robert Duncanson, an African-American painter in the Hudson River School style of painting. Junius also began painting landscapes of the east coast.
Once Sara and Junius wed, the couple briefly stayed in Kewanee, but were soon back on the move to Oberlin, Ohio; Erie, Pennsylvania; New York City; the Catskills; and Chicago. While they traveled, Sara continued to teach the Spencerian method, bringing in a second income.
During a stint in the Midwest, Junius began painting the prairie landscape around him. Junius’ prairie landscapes are said to be the first serious depictions of the flat, open Midwest. Prairies were not a common subject matter at the time. His works are often described as having an “American look.”
Not done with traveling, Junius and Sara returned to New England where Junius painted more traditional eastern landscapes, but in 1873 they returned to Chicago and Junius opened a studio. He gradually phased out painting portraitures to focus exclusively on landscapes. Junius’ works were displayed at several museums including the Art Institute of Chicago.
Over the years, as the buying public’s preference changed, and large, detailed panoramas of landscapes fell out of style, Junius took on students to supplement his income. His style evolved from oils to watercolors, as he aged and fashions changed. Junius continued to work on landscapes until his death in 1900. The Brauer Musuem of Art in Valparaiso has over 400 of Junius’ works, including sketchbooks and correspondence. You can also find his work at the Chicago History Museum.
Sara lived another 23 years, dying at the age of 91. The Spencerian script that she taught can still be seen in the logos of Coca Cola and Ford.
The large boulder over Sara and Junius’ graves beautifully reflects their sensibilities and love of nature, as well as their dedication to artistry and design. Particularly poignant is the epitaph: “These two visioned and created beauty for the joy of it.”
References: American Forests, Argus Leader, Art in America, Chicago Tribune, Daily Art Magazine, Demystifying the Copperplate-Spencerian Script Enigma, Junius Sloan: In Quest of Beauty (Kewanee Memory Lane YouTube Channel), The Kewanee Voice, New Spencerian Compendium of Penmanship, M. Christine Schwartz Collection, Questroyal Fine Art, Script and Scribble: The Rise and Fall of Handwriting, Zanerian.com