I joined the Daughters of the American Revolution for the genealogy - it is a lineage society, after all. In joining, I utilized their
Ancestor Database to find Revolutionary War Patriots to join through. I also pursued their
Descendants Database, which is made up of the other generations of ancestors that have been documented to reach the Patriots.
Unfortunately, I have very few ancestors in this database; for the most part, no one has joined under my lines in a way that connects to me any closer than the grandchild of the Patriot. Since the Patriots are mostly between 7th to 9th Great-Grandparents, that's not a close relationship. It is helpful to find closer relatives of course, because it could help me break down brick walls. Just think, if I had a brick wall line at 3rd Great-Grandparents and they were in the database... brick wall busted! For the most part, the DAR database is well documented (and if it's not, there's usually a notation).
Ultimately, the Ancestor Database and the Descendants Database (which are connected), are one giant family tree, with options to order the documentation used to prove the lineage (see my
previous post).
One of the benefits of joining the DAR and having my application approved is that my ancestors are now in the database! It takes a while, as each generation has to be indexed, but there're there. My application resulted in five generations being added to the database, starting with my Great-Grandparents, Bennie Craft and Sally Ruth Evans. I would be so thrilled if one day these generations helped someone break down a brick wall or join the DAR.
Go explore the databases on the DAR website - and check back often. One day a new member's application might help break down your brick wall.
