The following letter was written by John William Duncan (b. 1830) who enlisted at Charlotte, Virginia, on 22 September 1861 in Paris’ Company Virginia Artillery (alias Staunton Hill Artillery). He was mustered out the battalion on 25 April 1865 at Durham Station, Orange county, North Carolina. Serving with John in the same unit was his younger brother Thomas Agee Duncan (1839-1927). The unit was divided into three sections: two served in the Department of South Carolina, Georgia, and Florida near Savannah and the third in the Department of North Carolina. In May, 1862, they united in North Carolina and aided in the defense of Wilmington. One section was captured at Fort Anderson and the other two were assigned to B. C. Manly’s Battalion in the Army of Tennessee. Only a few surrendered on April 26, 1865. Its captains were Charles Bruce and Andrew B. Paris.
The Duncan brothers were from Marysville, Charlotte county, Virginia. Their parents were Jacob Agee Duncan (b. 1805) and Martha Eliza Wilkes (b. 1813).
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