Patriot In Lay Terms

Guide 1 of 10 · Sources last checked 2026-10-31 · Written with AI; every fact is tied to a quoted official source (how this works)

The Patriot Lineage Proof Roadmap: Proving Every Generation for DAR or SAR

New here? What DAR, SAR, NSCDA, "lineage society", "patriot", "bounty land" and "Stat." mean
  • Patriot: someone who supported the cause of American independence, for example by fighting in the battles of the Revolution, serving in the Continental Congress or signing the Declaration of Independence.[1]
  • DAR: the Daughters of the American Revolution, open to any woman 18 or older who can prove she descends from an ancestor who aided in achieving American independence.[2][3]
  • SAR: the National Society of the Sons of the American Revolution, open to any man 18 or older who can prove he descends from a patriot of the American Revolution.[1]
  • NSCDA: The National Society of the Colonial Dames of America, whose members descend from men and women who served the American colonies before July 5, 1776.[4]
  • Lineage society: a group whose membership is based on lineage, meaning you join by proving you descend from an ancestor the society accepts, as with DAR, SAR and NSCDA.[5][3][1]
  • Bounty land: free public land. A bounty-land warrant was a right to free land in the public domain, granted to veterans and their heirs for their service.[6]
  • Stat.: short for the Statutes at Large, the published federal laws. A citation such as "5 Stat. 128" gives the volume number, then the page in that volume.[7]

The same definitions on the home page

A lineage application is a chain. Each link is one generation, and each link holds only if the documents behind it hold. This roadmap shows how to plan that chain before you start filling in forms, using the published rules of the two largest Revolutionary War lineage societies. It is a planning aid, not a ruling: only the society's genealogists decide whether a line is approved.

Step 0: find the soldier's name

Everything else in this guide depends on knowing which ancestor was the patriot. If you don't know his name yet, start here.

Once you have a name, the free Lineage Evidence Matrix starts with him: his state, his type of service and his rough dates.

How the generations are numbered

On a DAR application the lineage starts with you, the applicant, as generation 1.[12] Your parents are generation 2, your grandparents generation 3, and your great-grandparents generation 4.[12] DAR suggests numbering the generations on a separate pedigree chart or outline so you stay on track.[12] SAR asks for the patriot to be a great-great-grandparent of some degree, so every SAR line runs at least five generations from the applicant.[11]

The chain follows biology. DAR lineages list the biological parents in each generation.[12] Step-parents and adoptive parents are left off the DAR form.[12] SAR states that it requires proof of bloodline descent, whether legitimate or illegitimate.[11]

What each generation needs: DAR and SAR side by side

QuestionDARSAR
Who counts as the patriot?Military, civil or patriotic service between 19 April 1775 and 26 November 1783, with a few special windows[13]Patriotic service, with some exceptions, between 19 April 1775 and 26 November 1783[11]
Generations 1–3Complete dates and places of birth and death for each person[12]Not stated on the SAR Step 1 page; SAR gives no preliminary decisions on a line of descent[11]
Older generationsAt least one documented date and place of birth or death for people who lived before modern vital records[12]Proof of bloodline descent from the patriot to the applicant[11]
Both parents?Both the man and the woman in each generation are documented[12]Not separately stated on the SAR Step 1 page
What has to be proven?Every name, date, place and relationship[12]Family tradition about service is not proof[11]
SponsorsNot covered on the pages used hereTwo current SAR members sponsor the applicant[11]

The roadmap, step by step

  1. Write the chain first, evidence second. List every generation from you back to the patriot by number, with names only. Mark each link you believe but cannot yet show on paper.
  2. Check whether the patriot is already on file. The DAR electronic application works only for ancestors already fully established with DAR.[14] A new ancestor, or a line that needs an analysis compiling indirect evidence, goes on the traditional paper application.[14]
  3. Build an evidence grid. For every generation, list birth, marriage, death and the parent-child link, and next to each one the record that supports it. The Lineage Evidence Matrix below does this in your browser.
  4. Use the record types reviewers see most often. DAR names vital records, census records, probate records, court records, land records and church records as the most common lineage sources.[14]
  5. Replace trees with records. DAR states that online family trees from any website are not an acceptable form of documentation.[14] Images of original records downloaded from a website are a different matter and are evaluated in the context of the whole lineage.[14]
  6. Prefer original records over compiled books. DAR prefers primary and original records over compiled family genealogies.[14]
  7. Cite as you go. For a census, DAR asks for the year, state, county, town, enumeration district and page number.[12] Every uploaded document is cited at least once, and every cited document is uploaded.[12]
  8. Prove the patriot's service separately from the lineage. DAR lists pensions, muster rolls, pay vouchers, oaths of allegiance, town meeting minutes and county court orders as typical service sources.[14]

Practical details people miss

DAR e-application uploads are JPG files only, so convert PDFs and phone scans before you start.[12] Years are entered as four digits.[12] Once submitted, DAR staff review generally takes about six weeks.[14] The DAR application cost includes a $75 application fee plus the first year's national dues, and chapters and state societies add their own dues.[14]

Where to go next

What to do next

  1. Record the patriot and each generation in the free Lineage Evidence Matrix. It gives you a to-do list of what is missing and where to look, fitted to each person's era and state, and a plan you can print.
  2. If a widow applied for a pension, check which widow pension laws fit with the free Widow Pension Law Checker.
  3. Find a local chapter. DAR's Chapter Locator finds DAR chapters in your area.[15] For SAR, your sponsor is often the local chapter registrar; pick your state on SAR's contact page.[8]
  4. Start the application with that person's help: a DAR member, or your SAR sponsor, helps guide you through it.[3][8]

Next guide: No Birth Certificate? Substitute Evidence That Can Prove Each Generation · All 10 guides

Sources

  1. SAR — About (Mission & Goals). Retrieved 2026-10-31. https://www.sar.org/sar-missions-and-goals/
  2. DAR — What is DAR?. Retrieved 2026-10-31. https://www.dar.org/discover/become-member/what-dar
  3. DAR — How to Join. Retrieved 2026-10-31. https://www.dar.org/discover/become-member/how-join
  4. The National Society of the Colonial Dames of America — Membership. Retrieved 2026-10-31. https://nscda.org/about/membership/
  5. NSCDA in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts — Membership. Retrieved 2026-10-31. https://nscdama.org/membership/
  6. NARA M804 descriptive pamphlet — Revolutionary War Pension and Bounty-Land-Warrant Application Files. Retrieved 2026-10-31. https://www.archives.gov/files/research/military/army/dc/m804.pdf
  7. Library of Congress — United States Statutes at Large: About this Collection. Retrieved 2026-10-31. https://www.loc.gov/collections/united-states-statutes-at-large/about-this-collection/
  8. SAR — Apply in 4 Easy Steps. Retrieved 2026-10-31. https://www.sar.org/how-to-apply/
  9. DAR Genealogical Research Databases — Revolutionary War Records. Retrieved 2026-10-31. https://services.dar.org/Public/DAR_Research/search_revwar/?Tab_ID=14&Tab_ID_Sub=0&action=list
  10. NARA — The American Revolution (research page). Retrieved 2026-10-31. https://www.archives.gov/research/military/american-revolution
  11. SAR — Step 1: Determine Eligibility. Retrieved 2026-10-31. https://www.sar.org/step-1/
  12. DAR Electronic Application — Step by Step instructions. Retrieved 2026-10-31. https://membership.dar.org/NSDAR/AppFormz/App_Help_Step_By_Step_1.aspx
  13. DAR — Accepted Revolutionary War Service. Retrieved 2026-10-31. https://www.dar.org/national-society/accepted-revolutionary-war-service
  14. DAR Electronic Application — FAQs. Retrieved 2026-10-31. https://membership.dar.org/NSDAR/AppFormz/FAQs.aspx
  15. DAR — Chapter Locator. Retrieved 2026-10-31. https://www.dar.org/discover/become-member/chapter-locator