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 \IRGIXIA BIOGRAPHY

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Williamson, who was also a native of Han- over county. \'irginia. Mrs. Duke was the daughter of William and Elizabeth (De Jar- nette) Williamson, of that county. Mr. Wil- liamson was a farmer all his life and the father of six children, of whom Dabney Williamson, now a resident of Richmond, and Lucy EUirton (Williamson) Duke are the only survivors. Mrs. Duke is now a resident of Richmond. To Mr. and Mrs. l'>ancis Johnson Duke were born eight chil- dren, five of whom are living, as follows : Frank W.. of Richmond, now the superin- tendent of the Mechanics' Institute of that city ; William Dabney. of this sketch ; Thomas Taylor, a lieutenant in the United States army ; Cora De Jarnette. now Mrs. Thomas A. Lewis, of Granville. Ohio, Mr. Lewis occupying the position of professor in the Denison University ; Lucy William- son, who lives unmarried with her mother. (IVj William Dabney Duke, third child of Francis Johnson and Lucy Burton (Wil- liamson) Duke, was born December 11. 1S72. in Richmond. N'irginia. He was edu- cated in the local public schools, which he attended through the high school in prepara- tion for a college course. He then matricu- lated at Richmond College in Richmond, and graduated therefrom with the class of 1894. with the degree of Bachelor of Science. His father's life-long experience in railroad matters naturally turned his thoughts and inclinations in that direction, but prior to attending college he occupied a clerical posi- tion with the Richmond Locomotive and Machine Works of Richmond, from 1888 to 1891. In 1894, after his graduation, he be- came associated with the Richmond, Fred- ericksburg & Potomac railroad, with which his father had been for so many years, first taking a position as stenographer under Major Myers, the president of the company. He continued in this work for six years with Major Myers, and then, in 1901, was given the position of general manager of the sys- tem. Mr. Duke was only twenty-eight vears of age when he was thus put in charge (if a railroad, a most conspicuous tribute to his capacity and skill, to say nothing of in- dustrv. which he had displayed from the outset. The competent manner in which he filled the post of general manager is evi- denced by the fact that five years later he was promoted to the position which he holds to-day. that of assistant to the president.

The Richmond, Fredericksburg & Poto- mac railroad and the Washington Southern railway, as the complete system is called, is the direct line between the capital of \'ir- ginia and the National Capital. It forms thus one of the most important links in the great chain of railroads which binds the south into an industrial unit. Besides this material importance, it also possesses for the people of the United States a senti- mental significance surpassed by no railroad in the country, in virtue of the many points of historic and romantic interest along its line, cities, towns, hamlets, associated with the dearest and most stirring episodes and traditions of the American people. From Washington the line runs along the Poto- mac river, passing the home of General Lee at Arlington, passing Alexandria, where is located historic Christ Church, where the unaltered pew of George Washington still stands, near Mount Vernon, through Fred- ericksburg and so on to Richmond, with its glorious and tragic associations. It is upon the official staff of this railroad that Mr. Duke holds his important post.

Mr. Duke has not, however, confined him- self to the interests of his business, a policy which has narrowed so many of the great figures in the financial and industrial world. On the contrary, he has given generously of both time and energy to the affairs of the community of which he is a distinguished member. Always keenly interested in pub- lic affairs, of both national and local signifi- cance, he has entered the latter with his characteristic enthusiasm, and made himself a force in local matters. Possessing a great and well deserved popularity, he was elected to the office of mayor of Ginter Park, which office he held when that charming suburb was annexed to Richmond in Xovemlier.

1914-.

William Dabney Duke married. Septem- ber 21. 1904, at Wake Forest. North Caro- lina, Jane E. Taylor, a native of that place, where she was born in 1883. Mrs. Duke is the daughter of Charles E. and Mary H. Taylor. Mr. Taylor is a distinguished scholar, was president and is now a mem- ber of the faculty of Wake Forest College. ]\Irs. Taylor is deceased. Mr. and Mrs. Duke are the parents of three children, as follows : Francis Johnson, born March 6. 1906: Mary Hinton. born September 28. 1908: William, b^rn May 2. I0i4. Mr. and