Mom's DAR Process - Documenting the Details

Mom met this past Thursday with the ladies from the Kikthawenund Chapter of the DAR at the Anderson, Indiana library.  They were holding their genealogy sessions to help new prospective members with their lineage.  They had already asked her to submit a biography so they could know something about her, believe they had to vote to make sure she was upstanding material.

Previous to the meeting, they had told her to bring documentation for the first 4 generations, so I had sent mom what I had on her parents, grandparents and great-grandparents.  There were actually a couple of items (birth/marriage/death) that I had not accumulated over the years, even though I knew where they were located.  Cost was a factor when I was younger and I hadn't sought them out.  Together we put together a plan and mom went to the Madison County Health Department and County Clerk to obtain what documents she could find.

The meeting with the ladies from the DAR went well.  I think they were glad to see that not only did mom know who her Patriot ancestor was, but that she had a pedigree chart and a good start on the documentation for the process.  I would imagine that not everyone who seeks membership has the lineage already known.

Afterwards, when telling me about the meeting, one of the items that mom stated that we would need would be her grandfather's birth certificate. Apparently, the national organization is adamant about that.  However, Indiana didn't require birth certificates until 1907, and he was born in 1894.  Mom's grandmother, born in 1897, did have a birth certificate, however.  Apparently the filing was rather optional at that point in time.

The regent and other ladies at the meeting suggested that mom apply for her grandfather's long-form death certificate from the state, which might contain the birth date.

Looking over the guidelines for documentation of the line, I believe there might be other things we can use to substitute.  I've found his World War II draft card, for instance, which clearly states his date and place of birth and also there is the census record in 1900 when he was living at home which gives the month and date.  If for some reason that cannot be overcome, it would be a major stumbling block because many of mom's DAR recognized Patriot ancestors would come through this line.

Check out : Is That Lineage Right and DAR Genealogy guidelines for tips on how to prepare your lineage for the application process.

Personally, I'm not sure that the requirement of a birth certificate for her grandfather makes sense when the state didn't require one at the time, as well as the fact that if my sister were the one applying for membership, he would be far enough back that they would just want to see the relationship established through census records.  But then again, I don't get to make the rules.

This whole process has mom interested in her family history and she's learning some things she didn't know about them.  The members are very helpful and the registrar has been emailing mom the long form application and providing tips on what information she needs to complete.

To facilitate this process, I've created a Dropbox folder for the information I've collected on each successive generation from mom to the Patriot ancestor.  That way when she meets with them again she can pull up all the documentation on her computer and they can print out what they need or advise her if they need more information.

We are meeting tomorrow to head to the Madison County, Indiana courthouse to see if we can locate some information that will fill in the gaps.  While we are there, I will also see if I can pick up some additional information on other lines.