My Dad greatly influenced my life, being one of the first black British Spitfire pilots in WWII. His exploits over France and Germany as part of the Normandy landings and action in India and North Africa always left me wondering if I would ever have such heroic adventures.
His father, Ephraim Duke was a merchant seaman who travelled from Nigeria to find his fortune. Staying in Middlesbrough in the early 1900’s he met and married Ivy, my paternal grandmother. I didn’t learn much about Ephraim while I was growing up, mainly as he went back to sea, never to return but now I’m determined to trace his roots and close the circle of my family’s history.
The search for my African family began with Google, where I entered my dad’s name, Edem Ephraim Duke. It brought up a YouTube video I’d posted in 2013 on Valentine’s Day for my mum and introduced me to the Efik Kingdom. It also introduced me to the fascinating history of the Duke family in Nigeria, which is intertwined with Efik culture, European trade, and the complex legacy of the transatlantic slave routes.
With Duke Town at its centre, Calabar, a thriving seaport, should provide the perfect shore to set anchor at the end of our voyage to Africa and then start a journey to discover my family history.
