The Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) is a lineage-based membership organization for women who are descended from a person involved in United States' independence.[1] DAR has chapters in all fifty of the U.S. states as well as in the District of Columbia. There are also DAR chapters in Australia, Austria, the Bahamas, Bermuda, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Spain, and the United Kingdom. DAR's motto is "God, Home, and Country." Some state chapters of DAR date from as early as October 11, 1890, and the National Society of DAR was incorporated by Congressional charter in 1896.
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Membership in DAR is open to all women who can prove lineal bloodline descent from an ancestor who aided in achieving United States independence, regardless of race or religion.[1] The National Society of DAR is the final arbiter of the acceptability of all applications for membership.
Acceptable ancestors include various related categories of known historical figures, including:
The DAR gives over $1 million annually to support six schools that provide for a variety of special needs.[2] Supported schools include:
In addition, the DAR provides $70,000 to $100,000 in scholarships and funds to American Indian youth at Chemawa Indian School, Salem, Oregon; Bacone College, Muskogee, Oklahoma; and the Indian Youth of America Summer Camp Program.[3]
Each year, the DAR conducts a national American history essay contest among students in grades 5 through 8. A topic is selected for use during the academic year, and essays are judged "for historical accuracy, adherence to topic, organization of materials, interest, originality, spelling, grammar, punctuation, and neatness." The contest is conducted locally by the DAR chapters, and chapter winners are judged regionally and nationally, with national winners receiving a monetary award.[4]
The DAR awards $150,000 per year in scholarships to high school graduate, music, law, nursing, and medical school students. Only two of the 20 scholarships offered are restricted to DAR members or their descendants.[5]
In 1989, the DAR established the NSDAR Literacy Promotion Committee, which coordinates the efforts of DAR volunteers to promote child and adult literacy. Volunteers teach English, tutor reading, prepare students for GED examinations, raise funds for literacy programs, and participate in many other ways.[6]
Although the DAR now forbids discrimination in membership based on race or creed, some members held such views when racial segregation was public policy in much of the United States. In 1932, Washington, D.C. was a segregated city. The DAR adopted a rule excluding African-American artists from the stage at Constitution Hall, built in 1929, following protests by some members over "mixed seating"—blacks and whites seated together at concerts of black artists.[7] The District of Columbia retained official segregation until after World War II. In 1936, Sol Hurok, manager of African-American contralto Marian Anderson since 1935, attempted to book Anderson at Constitution Hall. Owing to the "white performers only" policy, the booking was refused. Instead, Anderson performed at a Washington-area black high school, and was also invited by First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt to perform for her and President Roosevelt. During this time, Anderson came under considerable pressure from the NAACP not to perform for segregated audiences.[8]
In 1939, Hurok, along with the NAACP and Howard University, petitioned the DAR to make an exception to the "white performers only" policy for a new booking, which was declined by the DAR. Hurok attempted to find a local high school for the performance, but the only suitable venue was an auditorium at a white high school. The school board, which was indirectly under the authority of the DAR President, refused to allow Anderson to perform there.[8] Eleanor Roosevelt immediately resigned her membership of the DAR. The organization later apologized and welcomed Anderson to Constitution Hall on a number of occasions after 1939, including a benefit concert for war relief in 1942.[9] But, they did not officially reverse their "whites only" policy until 1952.[10] Anderson chose Constitution Hall as the place where she would launch her farewell American tour in 1964.[11]
On January 27, 2005, the DAR co-hosted the first day of issue dedication ceremony of the Marian Anderson commemorative stamp with the U.S. Postal Service and Anderson's family.[12]
In October 1977, Karen Batchelor Farmer (now Karen Batchelor) of Detroit, Michigan was admitted as the first known African-American member of DAR.[13] Batchelor started her genealogical research in 1976 as a young mother who wanted to commemorate the American bicentennial year in a way that had special meaning for her family. Within 26 months, she had traced her family history back to the American Revolution—a completely unexpected result. Batchelor traced her ancestry to a patriot, William Hood, who served in the colonial militia in Pennsylvania during the Revolution in the defense of Fort Freeland.[14]
With the help of the late James Dent Walker, head of Genealogical Services at the National Archives in Washington, D.C., Batchelor was contacted by the Ezra Parker Chapter in Royal Oak, Michigan, who invited her to join their chapter; she officially became DAR member #623,128. In December 1977, Batchelor's admission as the first known African-American member of DAR sparked international interest after a story on page one of the New York Times[15]: she also appeared on Good Morning America, where she was interviewed by regular guest host, John Lindsay, former mayor of New York.
Batchelor co-founded the Fred Hart Williams Genealogical Society in 1979, an organization in Detroit, Michigan for African-American family research. She continues to research her own family history and inspire others to do the same.
In March 1984, a controversy arose when Lena Lorraine Santos Ferguson said she had been denied membership in a Washington, D.C. chapter of the DAR because she was black.[16] The reporter Ronald Kessler quoted Ferguson's two white sponsors, Margaret M. Johnston and Elizabeth E. Thompson, as saying that although Ferguson met the lineage requirements and could trace her ancestry to Jonah Gay, fellow DAR members told them that Ferguson was not wanted because she was black.
Sarah M. King, the president general of the DAR, said that each of the DAR's more than 3,000 local chapters decides if it wishes to accept members. Asked if she thought this acceptable, she said, "If you give a dinner party, and someone insisted on coming and you didn't want them, what would you do?" King continued, "Being black is not the only reason why some people have not been accepted into chapters. There are other reasons: divorce, spite, neighbors' dislike. I would say being black is very far down the line ... There are a lot of people who are troublemakers. You wouldn't want them in there because they could cause some problems."[16]
After the publicity about the comments, the D.C. City Council threatened to revoke the DAR's real estate tax exemption. King said that Ferguson should have been admitted and said her application to join the DAR was handled "inappropriately". Representing Ferguson free of charge, lawyers from the Washington law firm of Hogan & Hartson began working with King to develop positive ways to ensure that blacks would not be discriminated against when applying for membership. The DAR changed its bylaws to bar discrimination "on the basis of race or creed". King announced a resolution to recognize "the heroic contributions of black patriots in the American Revolution".
As a result of the Washington Post story, Ferguson, a retired school secretary, was admitted to the DAR. "I wanted to honor my mother and father as well as my black and white heritage," Ferguson said after being admitted. "And I want to encourage other black women to embrace their own rich history, because we're all Americans." She became chairman and founder of the D.C. DAR Scholarship Committee. She died in March 2004 at the age of 75.
This list contains related U.S. organizations.
There is one related organization in Canada that is similar to the DAR and SAR.
This article incorporates public domain material from websites or documents of the National Archives and Records Administration.