Scanned images of approved application forms submitted to the Sons of the American Revolution in the past can help those interested in joining by providing information about proven Patriots. The collection consists of 145,000 applications, each one tracing a member back to an ancestor who supported the cause of American Independence.
Lineage Societies Honoring Revolutionary Patriots
Two organizations, the Sons of the American Revolution and the Daughters of the American Revolution are lineage societies whose members can prove direct descent from an ancestor who fought in or otherwise supported the American Revolutionary War. While the scanned application forms being made available are not considered “proof” by either organization, the forms are quite useful for tracing lineages and researching the documents needed by those who wish to join a lineage society.
Types of Records that Prove Descent
The applications provide pedigrees and source citations to the documents that link each generation. The applications also briefly describe the ancestor’s service, which may include the nature of the service, the state where performed, and other military information. Birth, marriage, and death information for each person in the lineage are also provided.
Approved application forms in this collection describe genealogical sources that prove descent, and may include citations for family Bible records, deeds, wills, marriage records, military records, cemetery transcriptions, and family or local histories.
Accessing the SAR Collection
While SAR records can be found during regular searches, it may be easier to go directly to the collection using this link to the Sons of the American Revolution Membership Applications,1889-1970.
You can also use the Ancestry Card Catalog, keying “american revolution membership applications” into the search field to find the direct link. This collection is part of Ancestry.com’s subscription service, so these links will not work unless you are subscribed and are logged in.
Other Ancestry.com Revolutionary War Records
In addition, Ancestry.com has two other collections that are vital for researching Revolutionary War ancestors: U.S. Revolutionary War Rolls, 1775-1783 and U.S. Compiled Revolutionary War Military Service Records, 1775-1783. The first of these databases contains U.S. National Archives records that list Revolutionary War soldiers -- name, category, rank, and NARA microfilm roll number. Images of the records are online.
The other database contains compiled military service records for Revolutionary War soldiers. Compiled records are packets that include abstracts of records such as muster rolls, payrolls, and various other military accounts. Both of these sources, plus the SAR membership applications, will go a long way in helping genealogists trace their Revolutionary-era ancestors.
Sources
“Military Records: American Revolution,” National Archives
Katharine Garstka - Katharine Garstka specializes in genealogical research and in historical and genealogical writing.
