Who is eligible to join the SAR?

Any man of age eighteen years or over who is the lineal descent of an ancestor who supported the war for American Independence, is eligible for membership in the Sons of the American Revolution.  These ancestors are referred to as a Revolutionary War Patriot and include those persons who fought in the military and/or militia, who provided supplies to the American cause, who served on political bodies supporting the Revolution, who signed oaths of supports and similar acts.

 

Acceptable Service

·        Signer of Declaration of Independence.

·        Battle of Point Pleasant, October 10, 1774.

·        Ft. William and Mary, December 14 / 15, 1774

·        Military or naval service from April 19, 1775, to November 26, 1783

·        Civil service under the Colonies from April 19, 1775, to November 26, 1783, inclusive.

·        Patriotic service by men or women during the Revolutionary period, including —

o   Member of committees made necessary by the war; such as Committee of Correspondence, Inspection and Safety; Committee to care for soldiers’ families; including Committees from six months before the Battle of Point Pleasant which furthered the cause of the Colonies.

o   Any pledge to support the cause of the Colonies, such as signing the Oath of Fidelity and Support, the Oath of Allegiance, Articles of Association, or the Association Test.

o   Members of all Continental Congress.

o   Furnishing a substitute for military service.

o   Signers of Mecklenburg Declaration, 1775; Albemarle,

o   Virginia, Declaration; and similar declarations. Signers of petitions addressed to and recognizing the authority of the provisional and new state governments. Persons accepting obligations or acting under direction of the provisional and new state governments, such as persons directed to hold elections, to oversee road construction, to collect provisions, etc.

o   Members of Boston Tea Party; Kaskaskia Campaign;

o   Galvez Expedition; Cherokee Expedition; Edenton Tea Party

o   Physician, surgeon, nurse, or others rendering aid to the wounded, and ministers known to be in sympathy with the Colonies, either by sermon, speech, or action.

o   Defenders of forts and frontiers; rangers.

o   Prisoners of war, including those on the British ship, “Old Jersey,” and other prison ships.

o   Rendering material aid, such as furnishing supplies with or without remuneration; lending money to the Colonies, munitions makers, and gunsmiths; or anything which furthered the Cause.