Memorable Manitobans: Thomas Duncan (1849-1910)

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Thomas Duncan
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Blacksmith, MLA (1892-1895), MLA (1896-1899).

Born in Scotland in 1849, he came to Manitoba by way of Ontario around 1874. When the town of Nelson was organized, he moved there, opened a blacksmith shop and served as Mayor. When the town was bypassed by the railway, he moved with the town to Morden in the 1880s. He was President of the Morden Curling Club (1891-1892).

A brother-in-law of James Rippoth Bonny, he had nine children: Dr. James Duncan (1872-?), Euphemia Duncan (1874-?), Margaret Duncan (1876-?), Thomas Duncan (1878-?), Georgina Duncan (1880-?, wife of W. H. Gray), Alexander Duncan (?-?), Harry Duncan (?-?), Ernest Duncan (?-?), and Jessie Potter Duncan (1881-1955, wife of Edmund James Boardman).

Defeated in the 1881 by-election for the Dufferin North constituency, he defeated Rodmond Palen Roblin in the 1892 provincial election and was re-elected in 1896. He retired from provincial politics in 1899 and took a position with the immigration department which took him to Syracuse, New York. He died there, of typhoid pneumonia, on 27 October 1910. His body was returned to Morden for burial in the Hillside Cemetery.

Sources:

1881 Canada census, FamilySearch.

“Western pioneer,” Manitoba Free Press, 29 October 1910, page 20.

“Evacuation of Nelson” by Howard Winkler, Winnipeg Free Press, 7 May 1953, page 25.

Obituaries and burial transcriptions, Manitoba Genealogical Society.

We thank Rick Mutton for providing additional information used here.

This page was prepared by Gordon Goldsborough.

Page revised: 16 December 2023

Memorable Manitobans

Memorable Manitobans

This is a collection of noteworthy Manitobans from the past, compiled by the Manitoba Historical Society. We acknowledge that the collection contains both reputable and disreputable people. All are worth remembering as a lesson to future generations.

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