DOCUMENTING EASY CASES

First, let's take the easiest case. If you have a relative in the SAR, DAR, or C.A.R., then your patriot ancestor's name, service, and a good portion of the lineage may have already been determined and documented. Thus, you could only need to be able to document and prove your relationship to the relative and what is called a record copy of the relative's SAR, DAR or C.A.R. application.

While an SAR record copy is already on file at the national headquarters, the SAR chapter and/or state-level society registrars may wish to check your application against the existing application already on file. They will want to verify the accuracy of the dates and names shown on both yours and the relative's applications.

As an SAR applicant, you typically need only your own birth certificate, your parents' marriage license, and a record copy of your father's or mother's application. If the relative was a grandfather or grandmother, you would need the documents connecting your father or mother to them. Other connections to a previous or current SAR, DAR or C.A.R., especially prior to 1985, member may require additional materials.

An SAR chapter or society officer can request record copies from the SAR, DAR, or C.A.R. Details concerning the DAR and C.A.R.'s record copy procedures can be found on their organizations website.

Other organizations may require military service for membership, but the SAR and DAR do not. Those who served in local governments; signed oaths of allegiance; or provided food, clothing, or services to the American Army are acceptable as patriot ancestors.

DOCUMENTING DIFFICULT CASES

Not every applicant has an easy case though, one in which a family member has already completed much of the genealogical research. Some individuals may need to do some of the research for themselves. If this is your case, do not fear: it is becoming easier to find the required documents. Some of these resources are included below to help you get started:

  • Wills and Deeds Before 1850
  • The Census: 1790 to 1940
  • Recent Generations: Back to 1900
  • Helpers, Latter-Day Saints Genealogical Archive, International Genealogical Index , and Biographical Sketches
  • Vital Records(Birth, Marriage and Death Records)
  • Church, Cemetery and Funeral Director Records
  • Fraternal Associations, Military Records, and Academic Records
  • Tax Records, County Minutes, Court Records, Orphan Records, Necrologies, Newspapers
  • National and State Archives, Pension records.

MISTAKES TO AVOID!

There are many pitfalls but all genealogists have to start somewhere. Here is a list of some common mistakes:

  • Using other people's family trees without verifying them. Ancestry.com and similar sites have many errors, repeated time and again.
  • Relying only on the Census. There are lots of people who never get listed on the census, there are sometimes mistakes and some census records are missing.
  • Trusting Family Lore. Granny might have meant well, but she leaped to the wrong conclusion. Stories get embellished over time.
  • Connecting the wrong "same name" people. Some names were quite common and families that lived close together with several branches may have a "same name" marriage.
  • Abbreviations are not always what they seem.
  • Children listed without parents may not be orphans. Census takers have been known to record the names of everyone in the house, even guests. Some children were apprentices.
  • Transpositions. People make mistakes. They transpose letters and numbers. Sometimes a nickname is recorded, names are misspelled.
  • Ignoring migration patterns and accepting locations that really don't make sense
  • DAR, SAR and published family history records are often wrong!