Captain William Duncan
Captain William Duncan was born 07/20/1840 in Baren Brau, Scotland, near Edinburgh. He came to North America by way of Canada and after a brief stay there he moved to Elgin, Illinois.
In 1860 Captain Duncan graduated from the Elgin Academy and within a year, at the outbreak of Civil War, enlisted to serve in the Thirty-Sixth Illinois Infantry of the Union Army.
During the war he distinguished himself for valor on numerous occasions most notably while serving under General Oliver O. Howard during Sherman's march to the sea.
When the Union army reached Savannah, Georgia ,they found themselves cut-off from their supplies and with no means of communication to know if there were friendly ships in the harbor.
When ordered by General Sherman to locate the supply ships, General Howard dispatched Capt. Duncan and two others to contact the Union fleet. The journey took three days and at one point Captain Duncan floated by an armed blockade in a hollowed out log.
Captain Duncan finally located a Union gunboat that carried him to Hilton Head Island, South Carolina. Supply ships were sent to Savannah, and Duncan continued on to Washington to deliver news of the successful "March to the Sea" to Secretary of War Edwin M. Stanton.
After the war Captain Duncan returned to Elgin, Illinois and was married to Lucy Harwood before moving to the Dakota Territory where his brothers had already settled.
In 1876 he was elected a member of the legislative council, or legislature, of Dakota territory, and was elected again in 1884.
Captain Duncan and his wife both passed away on 04 Feb 1925 and were buried in a joint funeral service.
Captain William Duncan was born 07/20/1840 in Baren Brau, Scotland, near Edinburgh. He came to North America by way of Canada and after a brief stay there he moved to Elgin, Illinois.
In 1860 Captain Duncan graduated from the Elgin Academy and within a year, at the outbreak of Civil War, enlisted to serve in the Thirty-Sixth Illinois Infantry of the Union Army.
During the war he distinguished himself for valor on numerous occasions most notably while serving under General Oliver O. Howard during Sherman's march to the sea.
When the Union army reached Savannah, Georgia ,they found themselves cut-off from their supplies and with no means of communication to know if there were friendly ships in the harbor.
When ordered by General Sherman to locate the supply ships, General Howard dispatched Capt. Duncan and two others to contact the Union fleet. The journey took three days and at one point Captain Duncan floated by an armed blockade in a hollowed out log.
Captain Duncan finally located a Union gunboat that carried him to Hilton Head Island, South Carolina. Supply ships were sent to Savannah, and Duncan continued on to Washington to deliver news of the successful "March to the Sea" to Secretary of War Edwin M. Stanton.
After the war Captain Duncan returned to Elgin, Illinois and was married to Lucy Harwood before moving to the Dakota Territory where his brothers had already settled.
In 1876 he was elected a member of the legislative council, or legislature, of Dakota territory, and was elected again in 1884.
Captain Duncan and his wife both passed away on 04 Feb 1925 and were buried in a joint funeral service.
Captain William Duncan
Captain William Duncan was born 07/20/1840 in Baren Brau, Scotland, near Edinburgh. He came to North America by way of Canada and after a brief stay there he moved to Elgin, Illinois.
In 1860 Captain Duncan graduated from the Elgin Academy and within a year, at the outbreak of Civil War, enlisted to serve in the Thirty-Sixth Illinois Infantry of the Union Army.
During the war he distinguished himself for valor on numerous occasions most notably while serving under General Oliver O. Howard during Sherman's march to the sea.
When the Union army reached Savannah, Georgia ,they found themselves cut-off from their supplies and with no means of communication to know if there were friendly ships in the harbor.
When ordered by General Sherman to locate the supply ships, General Howard dispatched Capt. Duncan and two others to contact the Union fleet. The journey took three days and at one point Captain Duncan floated by an armed blockade in a hollowed out log.
Captain Duncan finally located a Union gunboat that carried him to Hilton Head Island, South Carolina. Supply ships were sent to Savannah, and Duncan continued on to Washington to deliver news of the successful "March to the Sea" to Secretary of War Edwin M. Stanton.
After the war Captain Duncan returned to Elgin, Illinois and was married to Lucy Harwood before moving to the Dakota Territory where his brothers had already settled.
In 1876 he was elected a member of the legislative council, or legislature, of Dakota territory, and was elected again in 1884.
Captain Duncan and his wife both passed away on 04 Feb 1925 and were buried in a joint funeral service.
Captain William Duncan was born 07/20/1840 in Baren Brau, Scotland, near Edinburgh. He came to North America by way of Canada and after a brief stay there he moved to Elgin, Illinois.
In 1860 Captain Duncan graduated from the Elgin Academy and within a year, at the outbreak of Civil War, enlisted to serve in the Thirty-Sixth Illinois Infantry of the Union Army.
During the war he distinguished himself for valor on numerous occasions most notably while serving under General Oliver O. Howard during Sherman's march to the sea.
When the Union army reached Savannah, Georgia ,they found themselves cut-off from their supplies and with no means of communication to know if there were friendly ships in the harbor.
When ordered by General Sherman to locate the supply ships, General Howard dispatched Capt. Duncan and two others to contact the Union fleet. The journey took three days and at one point Captain Duncan floated by an armed blockade in a hollowed out log.
Captain Duncan finally located a Union gunboat that carried him to Hilton Head Island, South Carolina. Supply ships were sent to Savannah, and Duncan continued on to Washington to deliver news of the successful "March to the Sea" to Secretary of War Edwin M. Stanton.
After the war Captain Duncan returned to Elgin, Illinois and was married to Lucy Harwood before moving to the Dakota Territory where his brothers had already settled.
In 1876 he was elected a member of the legislative council, or legislature, of Dakota territory, and was elected again in 1884.
Captain Duncan and his wife both passed away on 04 Feb 1925 and were buried in a joint funeral service.
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