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The National Society Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) <dar.org> is the largest lineage society in America. Incorporated in 1896, the DAR has admitted more than 800,000 members. The application process takes about three months because a staff genealogist processes all applications in order of receipt, says Terry Ward, interim director of genealogy. To ensure problem-free processing, follow Ward’s seven suggestions:
1. Don’t send short-form birth certificates. These certificates, currently being issued by several states, don’t list the parents, and so they don’t prove a family relationship. If you have a short-form certificate, send it with other documentation, such as a baptismal record or birth announcement.
2. Paper-clip documentation for each generation together. This will help keep all relevant papers together, and make it easier for the staff genealogist to follow your records and documentation.
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3. Don’t send a handwritten application. As of March 1, these are no longer accepted.
4. Ask your local registrar or another society member for help compiling documents. Registrars are proficient in creating acceptable application packages for society membership. Some societies even have volunteers to assist with difficult research problems.
5. Be sure to include and prove places. In the 1920s and ’30s, the DAR often accepted applications without mention of place names — applications that are incomplete by today’s standards. If you’re using documentation from an older application, be sure to add the places.
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6. Make sure your application is well-documented with acceptable sources — especially if you’re joining under a new-to-the-DAR ancestor.
7. Be creative in finding sources for documentation. Don’t forget land records, tax lists, Bible records and letters.
From the October 2003 issue of Family Tree Magazine.
Web sites
• Cyndi’s List — Lineage Societies
<www.cyndislist.com/soc-lineage.htm>
• Cyndi’s List — Military-Related Societies
<www.cyndislist.com/military.htm#Societies>
• Hereditary Society Blue Book
<members.tripod.com/~Historic_Trust/society.htm>
• Links to Hereditary Societies
<www.geocities.com/ljdolby/heritagesoc.html>
• United States of America Patriotic and Lineage Societies
<www.lineages.com/usa/LinSocieties.asp?StateCode=US>
Books & CDs
• American Ancestry by Joel Munsell’s Sons (Clearfield Co.)
• Burke’s Extinct and Dormant Baronetcies of England, Ireland, and Scotland, 2nd edition, by John Burke and John Bernard Burke (Clearfield Co.)
• Founders and Patriots of America Index (Genealogical Publishing Co.)
• Hereditary Order of Descendants of Colonial Governors edited by Robert Glenn Thurtle (Genealogical Publishing Co.)
• Lineages of Hereditary Society Members CD-ROM (Genealogical Publishing Co.)
• Lineages of Members of the National Society of Sons and Daughters of the Pilgrims (Genealogical Publishing Co., 2 volumes)
• Mayflower Births and Deaths by Susan E. Roser (Genealogical Publishing Co.)
• Mayflower Marriages by Susan E. Roser (Genealogical Publishing Co.)
• The Roster and Register of the General Society of the War of 1812 edited by Dennis F. Blizzard, Frederick Ira Ordway Jr. and Robert Glenn Thurtle (Clearfield Co., 4 volumes)
• Seventeenth Century Colonial Ancestors by Mary Louise M. Hutton (Genealogical Publishing Co.)
• Some “Colonial Dames” of Royal Descent by Charles H. Browning (Genealogical Publishing Co.)
War societies
• Ancient and Honorable Artillery Company of Massachusetts
Armory Faneuil Hall Boston, MA 02109 (617) 227-1638 <www.ahacsite.org>
• Daughters of Union Veterans of the Civil War 1861-1865
c/o Donna Vaughn National Membership Chairperson 5050 Columbus St. SE #64 Albany, OR 97321 (541) 926-9240 <www.duvcw.org>
• General Society of the War of 1812
c/o Timothy C. Harris Vice President General-MAL 6184 Stinson Blvd. NE Fridley, MN 55432 <www.societyofthewarof1812.org>
• Hereditary Order of the Descendants of the Loyalists and Patriots of the American Revolution
3917 Heritage Hills Drive #104 Bloomington, MN 55437
• National Society Daughters of the American Revolution
1776 D St. NW Washington, DC 20006 (202) 628-1776 <www.dar.org>
• National Society of the Sons of the American Revolution
1000 S. Fourth St. Louisville, KY 40203 (502) 589-1776 <www.sar.org>
• National Society of the United States Daughters of 1812
1461 Rhode Island Ave. NW Washington, DC 20005 (202) 745-1812 <www.usdaughters1812.org>
• Sons of Confederate Veterans
c/o Frank B. Powell III Chairman 9701 Fonville Road Wake Forest, NC 27587 (919)847-6132 <www.scv.org>
• Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War
Box 1865 Harrisburg, PA 17105 (717) 232-7000 <suvcw.org>
• United Daughters of the Confederacy
328 N. Boulevard Richmond, VA 23220 (804)355-1636 <www.hqudc.org>
Old world societies
• Baronial Order of Magna Charta
109 Glenview Ave. Wymcote, PA 19095 <www.magnacharta.com>
• Descendants of the Illegitimate Sons and Daughters of the Kings of Britain
3858 N. LeavittAve. Chicago, IL 60618
• National Society Magna Charta Dames and Barons
Box 4222 Philadelphia, PA 19144 (215) 836-5022 <www.magnacharta.org>
• Order of the Crown of Charlemagne in the United States of America
c/o Tracy Crocker Registrar General 1411541st Ave. N. Plymouth, MN 55446 (763) 553-1122 <www.charlemagne.org>
Colonial societies
• Associated Daughters of Early American Witches
c/o Mrs. Edward L. Wilkinson Registrar General 6876 Richard Wilson Drive Millington, TN 38053 <adeaw.us>
• Flagon and Trencher Descendants of Colonial Tavernkeepers
c/o James Raywalt Keeper of the Tavern Records 7916 Quill Point Drive Bowie, MD 20720
• General Society of Mayflower Descendants
Box 3297 Plymouth, MA 02361 (508) 746-3188 <www.mayflower.org>
• Jamestowne Society
Box 17426 Richmond, VA 23226 (804) 673-6006 <www.jamestowne.org>
• National Society Colonial Dames XVII Century
1300 New Hampshire Ave. NW Washington, DC 20036 <www.colonialdames17c.net>
• National Society Daughters of American Colonists
2205 Massachusetts Ave. NW Washington, DC 20008 <www.nsdac.org>
• National Society of the Colonial Dames of America
Dumbarton House 2715 Q St. NW Washington, DC 20007 info@nscda.org <www.nscda.org>
• Order of Descendants of Colonial Physicians and Chirurgeons
9317 Bent Tree Circle Wichita, KS 67226
• The Society of Descendants of the Colonial Clergy
c/o Mrs. Frederick Johnson 255 Madison St. Dedham, MA 02026
• The Society of The Ark and The Dove
c/o Mrs. Barrett L. McKown 3580 S. River Terrace Edgewater, MD 21037 <www.thearkandthedove.com>
Early-settler societies
• First Families of Ohio
The Ohio Genealogical Society 713 S. Main St. Mansfield, OH 44907 (419)756-7294 <www.ogs.org>
• First Families of Tennessee
c/o East Tennessee Historical Society Box 1629 Knoxville, TN 37901 (865)215-8824 <www.east-tennessee-history.org>
• The Hereditary Order of the First Families of Massachusetts
The Committee on Admissions 253 Tremont St. Melrose, MA 02176 (781) 662-8034
• National Society of New England Women
c/o Ms. Leslie Vander Meulen 22 Cloverleaf Lane Manchester, MO 63011 <members.aol.com/calebj/nsnew.html>
• Order of the First Families of Virginia
5055 Seminary Road #439 Alexandria, VA 22311
• The Society of California Pioneers
300 Fourth St. San Francisco, CA 94107 (415) 957-1849 <www.californiapioneers.org>
• The Society of Indiana Pioneers
450 W. Ohio St. Indianapolis, IN 46202 (317) 233-6588 <www.indianapioneers.com>
• Sons and Daughters of Oregon Pioneers
Box 6685 Portland, OR 97228 <www.webtrail.com/sdop>
• Sons of the Republic of Texas
1717 Eighth St. Bay City, TX 77414 (979) 245-6644 <www.srttexas.org>
Religious &. ethnic societies
• The Dutch Settlers Society of Albany
23 Dresden Court Albany, NY 12203 (518)456-7202
• The Holland Society of New York
122 E. 58th St. New York, NY 10022 (212) 758-1675 <www.hollandsociety.com>
• The Huguenot Society of America
122 E. 58th St. New York, NY 10022 (212) 755-0592 <www.huguenotsocietyofamerica.org>
• Huguenot Society of South Carolina
138 Logan St. Charleston, SC 29401 (843) 723-3235 <www.huguenotsociety.org>
• Los Californianos (descendants of Hispanics in Alta California)
c/o JoAn Guthrie Box 600522 San Diego, CA 92160 <www.loscalifornianos.org>
• The National Huguenot Society
9033 Lyndale Ave. S. #108 Bloomington, MN 55420 (952) 885-9776
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