{"id":83,"date":"2016-09-13T18:59:56","date_gmt":"2016-09-13T22:59:56","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.richmond.edu\/keyes\/?page_id=83"},"modified":"2016-11-17T22:52:25","modified_gmt":"2016-11-18T03:52:25","slug":"history-of-the-dar","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/blog.richmond.edu\/keyes\/history-of-the-dar\/","title":{"rendered":"History of the Daughters of the American Revolution"},"content":{"rendered":"

“God, Home, and Country”<\/h1>\n

Founded on October 11 1890, the Daughters of the American Revolution was one of many hereditary patriotic groups who\u00a0traced their roots to the foundation of the United States. When the Sons of the American Revolution banned the entrance of women, the DAR was formed.<\/p>\n

Ellen Walworth, one of the co-founders.<\/p><\/div>\n

These women wanted to \u201cperpetuate the memory and spirit of the men and women who achieved American Independence,\u201d through this new society. It grew quickly, and soon became not only a prominent heritage group, but a renowned women’s society. It established a literal blood bond between women, and the “white lineal societies” like the D.A.R. re-imagined their connection to the country as their claim to “true Americanism.” Its first scandal came when a member, Flora Darling, openly fought their regulations regarding bloodlines. She argued that those who descended from “Mother of a Patriot” were of degenerate stock, and those admitted through “collateral descent,” darkened the purity of the blood.<\/p>\n

As a result, in 1894 the annual congress agreed and strict linear descent from a male relative was made a requirement for membership. Other membership requirements included\u00a0upstanding moral character, proper documentation, good disposition, and any other qualities deemed “acceptable.” This excluded poor women who could not obtain official documentation due to either their socioeconomic status, or that of their revolutionary ancestor. It also left out those they saw as not “acceptable,” like Black women, Jewish women, and Native American women. This led to a special sense of superiority related to the claim of revolutionary blood, and created a group of upper class white women. These women had the luxury of being able to define their heritage as truly American, descended from the “heroic white patriots” of the revolution.<\/p>\n

Clara Barton, a member of the DAR.<\/p><\/div>\n

The notion of “Republican Motherhood,” was particularly popular with the group, and they\u00a0praised the women of the revolution for\u00a0the sacrifices they made for the greater good of the country. Mothers of the revolution were not afraid to send their sons off to war and fiercely defend\u00a0their homes, and the DAR saw itself\u00a0as the inheritor of that legacy in a modern context – educating the youth on patriotism and sacrifice for country and staunchly supported the military.<\/p>\n

They created the “Children of the American Revolution” in order to promote education, lobbied for Flag Day, funded the installation of historic markers for battles and events of the American Revolution, paid for grave markers for soldiers, and supported English and history classes for new immigrants to help integrate them into American society. Part of this included handing out manuals to help with different aspects of American culture and donating clothes to new immigrants to help keep women busy. At the same time, they actively argued against immigration and allowing immigrants to begin the “clouding of the purity cup”of Anglo-Saxon blood. The reasoning behind donating cloth to make clothing was to keep them busy which\u00a0meant\u00a0“less time for riotous discontent, formerly apparent in ceaseless fighting,” that they considered immigrants to be prone to.<\/p>\n

This conservative rhetoric coupled with an active role in patriotic and charitable efforts made the DAR appealing on a massive scale, and by 1900, the membership had reached over 30,000 women. By 1929, it had 165,000 members and 2,275 active chapters. Their efforts were dedicated to education, historic preservation, and patriotism.\u00a0They partially funded schools\u00a0for those “children of pure Anglo-Saxon strain tucked away in the remote hills of the Southland,” and “Americanization Schools” for immigrant children. Scholarship funds were given to the states to award to any student regardless of race. By the 1930s the\u00a0DAR eventually amassed property valued at over a million including Continental Hall, administrative buildings, and Constitution Hall, and they were hoping to eventually open the largest genealogical resource center in the United States.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Further Reading:<\/h4>\n

The Daughters of the American Revolution History Exhibit<\/a><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Sources:<\/h5>\n

Carolyn Strange. “Sisterhood of Blood: The Will to Descend and the Formation of the Daughters of the American Revolution.” Journal of Women’s History<\/i> 26, no. 3 (2014): 105-128. https:\/\/muse.jhu.edu\/ (accessed September 30, 2016).<\/p>\n

Carol Medlicott, “One Social Milieu, Paradoxical Responses: A Geographical Re-Examination of the Ku Klux Klan and the Daughters of the American Revolution in the Early Twentieth Century,” in Spaces of Hate: Geographies of Discrimination and Intolerance in the U.S.A., ed. Colin Flint (Routledge Press, 2003) 21-48.<\/p>\n

\n
\n
\n
Grace Brosseau, “D. A. R.: Home and Country.” The North American Review<\/i> 225, no. 843 (1928): 592-96. http:\/\/www.jstor.org\/stable\/25110496.<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
Simon Wendt, “Nationalist Middle-Class Women, Memory, and Conservative Family Values, 1890-1945” in Inventing the Modern American Family:Family Values and Social Change in 20th Century United States<\/em>, ed. Isabel Heinemann (Campus Verlag, 2012) 31-58.<\/div>\n

Glen Jeansonne,\u00a0Women of the Far Right: The Mothers\u2019 Movement and World War II\u00a0<\/em>(Chicago: University of Chicago, 1996).<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

“God, Home, and Country” Founded on October 11 1890, the Daughters of the American Revolution was one of many hereditary patriotic groups who\u00a0traced their roots to the foundation of the United States. When the Sons of the American Revolution banned the entrance of women, the DAR was formed. These women wanted to \u201cperpetuate the memory […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2125,"featured_media":425,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"full-width-page-template.php","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-83","page","type-page","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/P805u5-1l","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":128,"url":"https:\/\/blog.richmond.edu\/keyes\/the-magazine\/","url_meta":{"origin":83,"position":0},"title":"History of the DAR Magazine","author":"Emeline Blevins","date":"September 13, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"One aspect of the DAR was writing and publishing\u00a0an official magazine for its members. Their purpose was to\u00a0\" issue a magazine\u00a0devoted especially to the cause of a true and liberal Americanism,\" and educate its members on the legacy of their revolutionary forefathers.\u00a0Initially called\u00a0the American Monthly Magazine, each issue consisted of\u2026","rel":"","context":"Similar post","block_context":{"text":"Similar post","link":""},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blog.richmond.edu\/keyes\/files\/2016\/09\/First-10-Jan-Issues.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blog.richmond.edu\/keyes\/files\/2016\/09\/First-10-Jan-Issues.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blog.richmond.edu\/keyes\/files\/2016\/09\/First-10-Jan-Issues.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blog.richmond.edu\/keyes\/files\/2016\/09\/First-10-Jan-Issues.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blog.richmond.edu\/keyes\/files\/2016\/09\/First-10-Jan-Issues.jpg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blog.richmond.edu\/keyes\/files\/2016\/09\/First-10-Jan-Issues.jpg?resize=1400%2C800&ssl=1 4x"},"classes":[]},{"id":257,"url":"https:\/\/blog.richmond.edu\/keyes\/before-and-after-keyes\/","url_meta":{"origin":83,"position":1},"title":"Before and After Keyes","author":"Emeline Blevins","date":"October 2, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"Frances Keyes's time as editor (late 1937-1939) marked a profound shift for the magazine. Her goal for the publication was to make it as popular and \"outstanding\" in the fields of history and genealogy as the National Geographic Magazine was in\u00a0its respective field. And while the DAR said that the\u2026","rel":"","context":"Similar post","block_context":{"text":"Similar post","link":""},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blog.richmond.edu\/keyes\/files\/2016\/10\/Frances-c.-1937-e1477664950524.jpg?fit=1024%2C381&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blog.richmond.edu\/keyes\/files\/2016\/10\/Frances-c.-1937-e1477664950524.jpg?fit=1024%2C381&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blog.richmond.edu\/keyes\/files\/2016\/10\/Frances-c.-1937-e1477664950524.jpg?fit=1024%2C381&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blog.richmond.edu\/keyes\/files\/2016\/10\/Frances-c.-1937-e1477664950524.jpg?fit=1024%2C381&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":127,"url":"https:\/\/blog.richmond.edu\/keyes\/thedar\/","url_meta":{"origin":83,"position":2},"title":"The Daughters of the American Revolution","author":"Emeline Blevins","date":"September 13, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0History of the Daughters of the American Revolution History of the DAR\u00a0Magazine Time as Editor Before and After Keyes Gallery Sources \u00a0 \u00a0","rel":"","context":"Similar post","block_context":{"text":"Similar post","link":""},"img":{"alt_text":"Frances_Parkinson_Keyes_1921","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blog.richmond.edu\/keyes\/files\/2016\/09\/Frances_Parkinson_Keyes_1921-1.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":85,"url":"https:\/\/blog.richmond.edu\/keyes\/editor-in-chief\/","url_meta":{"origin":83,"position":3},"title":"Editor in Chief","author":"Emeline Blevins","date":"September 13, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"Frances was made editor of the Daughters of the American Revolution Magazine on September 14th, 1937 \u2013 filling a position that had been vacant for two years. With her years of writing experience with Good Housekeeping among many other magazines, as well as her connections in Washington and across the\u2026","rel":"","context":"Similar post","block_context":{"text":"Similar post","link":""},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blog.richmond.edu\/keyes\/files\/2016\/09\/let.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":212,"url":"https:\/\/blog.richmond.edu\/keyes\/magcitations\/","url_meta":{"origin":83,"position":4},"title":"DAR Magazine Citations","author":"Emeline Blevins","date":"September 29, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"The Magazine \u00b9American Monthly 2, no. 1 January, 1893. \u00b9American Monthly 4, no. 1 January, 1894. \u00b9American Monthly 6, no. 1 January, 1895. \u00b9American Monthly 8, no. 1 January, 1896. \u00b9American Monthly 10, no. 1 January, 1897. \u00b9American Monthly 12, no. 1 January, 1898. \u00b9American Monthly 14, no. 1 January,\u2026","rel":"","context":"Similar post","block_context":{"text":"Similar post","link":""},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":87,"url":"https:\/\/blog.richmond.edu\/keyes\/thema\/","url_meta":{"origin":83,"position":5},"title":"The Marian Anderson Event","author":"Emeline Blevins","date":"September 13, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"Frances Keyes's feelings towards politics and segregationist policies have always been vaguely alluded to, and while she did advocate on the behalf of a maternity bill, and eventually wrote about warming up towards women's suffrage, these are some of\u00a0her few openly political moments. Frances tended to avoid politics and\u00a0did her\u2026","rel":"","context":"Similar post","block_context":{"text":"Similar post","link":""},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blog.richmond.edu\/keyes\/files\/2016\/09\/8556484941_7f02dea4cf_b.jpg?fit=1001%2C768&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blog.richmond.edu\/keyes\/files\/2016\/09\/8556484941_7f02dea4cf_b.jpg?fit=1001%2C768&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blog.richmond.edu\/keyes\/files\/2016\/09\/8556484941_7f02dea4cf_b.jpg?fit=1001%2C768&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blog.richmond.edu\/keyes\/files\/2016\/09\/8556484941_7f02dea4cf_b.jpg?fit=1001%2C768&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.richmond.edu\/keyes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/83","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.richmond.edu\/keyes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.richmond.edu\/keyes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.richmond.edu\/keyes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2125"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.richmond.edu\/keyes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=83"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/blog.richmond.edu\/keyes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/83\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.richmond.edu\/keyes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/425"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.richmond.edu\/keyes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=83"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}