William Brice Duncan
One of four brothers (Ralph, Ray and Edward), Brice grew up on his father's
homestead, four miles south of Medicine Lodge. The boys and their one sister,
Dora Elizabeth, attended the country school near the farm. Brice married Emma
May Haner of Sharon in 1908 and upon the death of his father, A.L. Duncan, the
homestead was divided and farmed by the four sons.
Brice and Emma soon moved to New Mexico where their son, Beuford Brice, was
born. Soon they returned to Kansas and assisted Ray on the farm. A daughter,
Joan, was born there and went to the same school attended by her father and
brother.
Beuford and Joan, although several years apart, shared the joys and hardships
of farm life, including a tornado in 1927 which moved their house several
hundred feet. Over the years, they participated in the Peace Treaty pageants.
Beuford started out as an "Indian" and ended up driving the oxen as a "buffalo
hunter," as was his grandfather.
After graduating at the height of the Depression, Beuford joined the Civilain
Conservation Corps, and assisted with many worthwhile projects, such as building
dams and shelter belts. Later he went to California and worked for a gas company
until World War II. During this period he married a homestown girl, Edna Gordon,
and their two children (Larry and Kathleen) were born in Barstow, California.
After the war Brice and emma moved into town where they lived until their
deaths - his in 1950 and hers in 1964. Beuford and Edna returned to Medicine
Lodge in 1943 to agian enjoy the small town atmosphere and to give their
children knowledge of their roots. In 1953 they moved to Wichita as employees
in the Boeing Company offices. Ten years later they were sent to New Orleans
to work on the new Space Program, he as a Purchasing Agent and she as a Technical
Writer. At this time they adopted another son, Kelly.
In the meantime Joan graduated from MLHS and married Eugene Whelan. She
worked in the First National Bank, and he was employed at National Gypsum,
except for a stint in the Korean War. Their children Gregory, Timothy, Michael,
and Karen also attended Medicine Lodge grade and high schools, then went on to
college and professional careers. Gregory and Michael married hometown girls,
Sara Lottridge and Amy Parker, respectively. Tim married Cindy Cook of
Independence, Kansas, and as of this date they have a daughter, Brooke Suzanne.
Larry Duncan, Beuford's son, married Janell Coburn and works in the Veterans
Hospital in Gulfport, Mississippi. He has a son, Richard Lee, and a daughter,
Teresa Kay.
Kathleen married Carl Pope, a building contractor in Mulvane, Kansas. They
have two sons - Kevin and Brian. Kathleen owns a beauty shop and is active in
church work in Mulvane.
All of the Duncans have wonderful memories of life in Medicine Lodge and
consider it their "hometown."
Source:Chosen Land - Barber County, Kansas, pg. 162
Submitted by: Bueford Duncan, Joan Whelan