John Holt Duncan (July 7, 1820 – May 27, 1896) was one a founder of
Beta Theta Pi
Beta Theta Pi (), commonly known as Beta, is a North American social fraternity that was founded in 1839 at Miami University in Oxford, Ohio. One of North America's oldest fraternities, as of 2022 it consists of 144 active chapters in the Unite ...
, a prominent college fraternity founded at
Miami University
Miami University (informally Miami of Ohio or simply Miami) is a public research university in Oxford, Ohio. The university was founded in 1809, making it the second-oldest university in Ohio (behind Ohio University, founded in 1804) and the 10 ...
in 1839 and was its first president.
He made a career as a lawyer and judge in
Houston
Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 in ...
and
Bexar County, Texas
Bexar County ( or ; es, Béxar ) is a county in the U.S. state of Texas. It is in South Texas and its county seat is San Antonio.
As of the 2020 census, the population was 2,009,324. Bexar County is included in the San Antonio–New Bra ...
.
Biography
Duncan was born in
Cynthiana, Kentucky
Cynthiana is a list of Kentucky cities, home rule-class city in Harrison County, Kentucky, Harrison County, Kentucky, in the United States. The population was 6,402 at the 2010 United States Census, 2010 census. It is the county seat, seat of its ...
to John Hicks Duncan and Pauline Randolph Holt.
He grew up in Mississippi.
He attended Miami University where he studied law and graduated with an A.B and M.A. in 1840.
While there, he was one of eight founders of Beta Theta Pi fraternity and served as its first president.
After college, he was admitted to the bar.
He moved to Houston, Texas where he practiced law.
He became Chief Justice of Bexar County from 1857 to 1862.
Duncan served as a Confederate Artillery Captain in the
31st Texas Cavalry during the Civil War.
He lost a leg as a result of a battle wound on September 20, 1862, at the
First Battle of Newtonia
The First Battle of Newtonia was fought on September 30, 1862, between Confederate soldiers commanded by Colonel Douglas H. Cooper and a Union column commanded by Brigadier General Frederick Salomon near Newtonia, Missouri, during the American ...
.
When the Confederates retreated, the still-recovering Duncan was taken in by farmer and his wife.
When he was discovered by the Union troops, the soldiers executed the farmer for aiding the enemy.
The farmer's widow and children begged for Duncan's life, saving the injured man's life.
[Brown, James T., ed., ''Catalogue of Beta Theta Pi'', New York: 1917] They nursed him back to health and, then, helped get him back to the Confederates, some 200 miles south through enemy territory.
Duncan spent the rest of his life caring for the family and educating the children; he died penniless as a result.
After the war, Duncan returned to Texas.
He was a district justice from 1864 to 1865 and a city attorney for Houston from 1877 to 1879.
He died in the Confederate
Old Soldier's Home in
Austin, Texas
Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of Texas, as well as the county seat, seat and largest city of Travis County, Texas, Travis County, with portions extending into Hays County, Texas, Hays and Williamson County, Texas, Williamson co ...
in 1896 and was buried in the Confederate Veterans section of the
Texas State Cemetery
The Texas State Cemetery (TSC) is a cemetery located on about just east of downtown Austin, the capital of the U.S. state of Texas. Originally the burial place of Edward Burleson, Texas Revolutionary general and vice-president of the Republic of ...
.
Duncan's prosthetic leg is on display at the national headquarters of Beta Theta Pi at
Oxford, Ohio
Oxford is a city in Butler County, Ohio, United States. The population was 23,035 at the 2020 census. A college town, Oxford was founded as a home for Miami University and lies in the southwestern portion of the state approximately northwest ...
.
See also
*
References
External links
Photo of Duncan's Headstone
{{DEFAULTSORT:Duncan, John Holt
1820 births
1896 deaths
Lawyers from Houston
Lawyers from San Antonio
Texas state court judges
Miami University alumni
Beta Theta Pi founders
19th-century American judges