Welcome
The Martha Washington Example Chapter, Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) invites you to explore our web pages. Are you interested in your ancestral heritage? Are you interested in serving your community in meaningful ways? If so, we encourage you to discover how you may be connected to a patriot ancestor who served during the Revolutionary War. This revelation presents you with an opportunity to join over 175,000 women in friendship and service.
Our Mission
The DAR, founded in 1890 and headquartered in Washington, D.C., is a non-profit, non-political volunteer women’s service organization dedicated to promoting patriotism, preserving American history, and securing America’s future through better education for children.
DAR members volunteer millions of service hours annually in their local communities including supporting active duty military personnel and assisting veteran patients, awarding thousands of dollars in scholarships and financial aid each year to students, and supporting schools for underserved children with annual donations exceeding one million dollars.
As one of the most inclusive genealogical societies in the country, DAR boasts 190,000 members in 3,000 chapters across the United States and internationally. Any woman 18 years or older-regardless of race, religion, or ethnic background-who can prove lineal descent from a patriot of the American Revolution, is eligible for membership.
Encompassing an entire downtown city block, DAR National Headquarters houses one of the nation’s premier genealogical libraries, one of the foremost collections of pre-industrial American decorative arts, Washington’s largest concert hall, and an extensive collection of early American manuscripts and imprints.
NSDAR is exempt from Federal income taxes under the provisions of Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code, and receives no government funding.
Historic Preservation
DAR members participate in an array of projects to help preserve our cultural heritage, including:
- Restoring and maintaining historical sites
- Locating, restoring and marking Revolutionary War patriot gravesites and headstones
- Organizing and contributing to major restorations, commemorations and memorials
- Placing monuments around the world to memorialize people and events throughout American history
- Preserving genealogical records, artifacts and historical documents and making these items available to the public at DAR Headquarters
Education
DAR members are passionate about educating the youth of America and contributing to schools and student programs in a variety of ways, including:
- Providing scholarships and awards to outstanding students throughout the country
- Promoting education and citizenship through youth programs such as Children of the American Revolution, DAR Good Citizens and Junior American Citizens
- Sponsoring American history essay contests for youth in grades 5 through 8
- Offering educational summer camps and cultural programs through the DAR Museum
Patriotism
DAR Members’ love of country is evident in the multitude of patriotic endeavors they pursue, including:
- Providing more than 200,000 hours of volunteer time annually to veterans in Veterans Administration hospitals and non-VA facilities
- Offering support to America’s service personnel in current conflicts abroad through care packages, phone cards and other needed items
- Sponsoring special programs promoting the Constitution during its official celebration week of September 17-23
- Participating in naturalization ceremonies
- Presenting patriotic awards to deserving individuals