Today, in the year 2000, the Duncan Family is the only family living in the Oakville community whose history extends directly back to the Underground Railroad. Isabella Adams and Alexander Duncan had six children: sons Urban and Alvin and daughters Dorothy, Jean, Marion and Grace. Grace died young with the flu in 1924, and Urban just recently passed away in 1996. Alvin, Jean and Marion (now Marion Skeete) still live in Oakville, while Dorothy lives nearby in Burlington.
Dorothy became a Registered Nurse and has long been a volunteer at the Oakville Museum. Marion was a Registered Nurse’s Assistant, and Jean worked for many years for the Post Office. Urban worked for Imperial Oil in Toronto and was an avid musician, playing guitar and tenor banjo, and arranging music. Alvin was a Scoutmaster, worked for the aluminum factory, served as a Radar Operator for the Royal Air Force in World War II, and ran his own business “Al Duncan Television”.
Alvin has a keen interest in the history of the Oakville area, particularly its African American history, and also belongs to the Oakville Historical Society. He is well known for his presentations to school classes on the subject of the Underground Railroad. His daughter Arlene is a well-known performer, having acted in several movies. She also played the singing role of Harriet Tubman in the Underground Railroad musical docudrama “Sing Out Freedom Train”.
© Oakville Museum at Erchless Estate, The Corporation of the Town of Oakville, 2000
The following information is reproduced from the display panels in the exhibit “Oakville’s Black History”, as written and designed by Deborah Hudson, Curator of Collections, Oakville Museum at Erchless Estate.
