Soldier Information
Name: Vance Duncan
Alias:
Place of Birth: Nelson KY Year of Birth: 1843
Occupation: Laborer
Eyes: Dark Hair: Dark Complexion: Dark
Height in Feet: 5 Inches: 11
View Ledger
Enlistment Information
Enlistment Date: August 23, 1864
Enlistment Place: Louisville
Enlistment State: KY
Compiled Military Service Record
Document: View
Congressional District:
Company: G Regiment(s): 107th USCI
Mustered Where: Louisville, Kentucky
Mustered Out Date: November 22, 1866
Rank at Muster Out: Corporal
Notes:
The first page of the CMSR noted that Vance Duncan’s first name was either “Vance” and/or “Fance.” The alternative spelling of “Fance” did not appear elsewhere in Vance Duncan’s records. On March 1, 1866, Vance Duncan was promoted from private to corporal. In Jul/Aug 1866, the CMSR stated that Vance Duncan was, “In arrest waiting trial.” No further explanation was offered nor was there a report of the outcome of the “trial.” Given that he was mustered out as a corporal just a few months later indicates that the outcome of the “trial” was likely in Duncan’s favor. It is worth noting that when Vance Duncan mustered out, he owed money to sutler Roscoe C. Facer (1847-1904), as did Richard Duncan (10298). Vance Duncan’s CMSR (muster out page) included the notation of “Free.” Also, when Vance Duncan was mustered out, $100 of his bounty was paid, and another $100 was owed.
Soldier Death Information
Died in war? No
Military Death Date:
Military Death Location:
Military Cause of Death:
Death Date: January 1, 1905
Cause of Death: Unknown
Soldier Pension Information
Pension Card Link: Pension Card
Pension Application Date: April 30, 1886
Application No.: 571836 Certificate No.: 985872
Alternate First Name: Alternate Last Name:
Widow Pension Information
Widow Pension Card: Pension Card
Widow Application Date: May 7, 1905
Application No.: 823884 Certificate No.: 602642
No other family pension card found
Pension File Information
Pension File:
Pensioners: Laura Duncan
Pensioner County: Nelson Pensioner State: KY
Number of Pages:
Pension Notes:
Pension cards for Vance Duncan and his widow, Laura Duncan, were located, but no additional pension files or documents were found. Vance Duncan’s widow died about three years after she applied for benefits.
Freedman’s Bank/Freedmen’s Bureau Information
No Freedman’s Bank information found
No Freedmen’s Bureau Documents found
Family Information
Mother First Name: Mother Maiden Name:
Father First Name: Father Last Name:
Siblings:
Wife #1 First Name: Laura Ann Maiden Name: Adams
Wife #2 First Name: Maiden Name:
Wife #3 First Name: Maiden Name:
Children: Henry Clay Duncan 1868
Nancy Duncan 1869
Julia Duncan 1872
William Vance Duncan 1873
Clarence Duncan 1876
Leo 1880 Duncan
Joseph Duncan 1881
Lewis Henry Duncan 1885
John Duncan 1887
Robert Duncan 1890
Family Notes:
According to the 1900 Census, Laura Ann Adams Duncan had 12 children, but only eight were living. I was only able to identify the names of ten of those 12 children.
Family Tree: View
View Family Tree on Ancestry.com Please note: this requires a paid Ancestry.com account to view
1870 Census
1870 Census Link: View
1870 Profession: Farm hand
1870 Live with/near former enslaver? No
1870 Real Estate Value: 0 1870 Personal Estate Value: 0
1870 Ability to Read? Cannot read Ability to Write? Cannot write
1870 Census Notes:
1880 Census
1880 Census Link: View
1880 Profession: Farm laborer
1880 Live with/near former enslaver? No
1880 Ability to Read? Cannot read Ability to Write? Cannot write
1880 Census Notes:
1890 Census
1890 Census information not found
1900 Census
1900 Census Link: View
1900 Profession: Farmer
1900 Ability to Read? Cannot read Ability to Write? Cannot write
1900 Own/Rent: Rent 1900 Home Free/Mortgage: Unknown 1900 Farm/House: Unknown
1900 Census Notes:
1910 Census
1910 Census information not found
1920 Census
1920 Census information not found
Enslaver Information
Name: Isaac Duncan Location: Bloomfield, Nelson County, Kentucky
Previous Enslaver: Ellis Duncan
Enslaver Notes:
Vance Duncan was likely first enslaved by Ellis Duncan (1804-1859), the father of Isaac Wilson Duncan (1835-1907), who was Vance Duncan’s enslaver of record in 1864 (Ledger). Richard Duncan (10298) was also enslaved by Isaac Duncan. When Ellis Duncan died in 1859, Vance Duncan became the property of his widow (Isaac Duncan’s mother), Mary E. Wilson Duncan (1808-1872). Vance Duncan, along with 24 other persons, were enslaved by Mary E. Wilson Duncan when the 1860 Slave Schedule was conducted. There were several enslaved individuals who fit the description of Vance Duncan in both the 1850 and 1860 Slave Schedules. Sometime between 1860 and 1864, Mary E. Wilson Duncan must have passed ownership of Vance Duncan to her son, Isaac Duncan because when Vance Duncan enlisted in the USCI in 1864, Isaac Duncan was the enslaver of record on the Ledger.Ellis Duncan was a trustee of the Bardstown Female Academy, and his son Isaac Duncan was a graduate of Centre College (Class of 1857). Despite their interest in education, it appears as though they did not educate the enslaved. The 1870 Census indicates that neither Vance Duncan nor Richard Duncan (10298) were literate. After the death of his mother in 1872, Isaac Duncan moved his family from Nelson County to Jackson County, Missouri, and later relocated to Fayetteville, Arkansas. Isaac Duncan was known for raising imported purebred Scottish Galloway cattle. Isaac Duncan’s last will and testament (probated in 1908) was very long and detailed. In it, he admonished his children to treat each other with kindness, not to squabble over money, and not to squander their inheritance on speculative investments.
1850 Enslaver Census
1850 Census Link: View
1850 Slave Schedule Link: View
1850 Number of Enslaved: 27
1860 Enslaver Census
1860 Census Link: View
1860 Real Estate Value: $25,000 1860 Personal Estate Value: $22,375
1860 Slave Schedule Link: View
1860 Number of Enslaved: 25
1870 Enslaver Census
1870 Census Link: View
1870 Real Estate Value: $16,480 1870 Personal Estate Value: $6,870
1880 Enslaver Census
Compensation Information
Compensation Application not found