Daughters of this and that

[honeychile]

Originally Posted by Thetagirl218

So according to my aunt who traces the genealogy in the family, I know I would be eligible for DAR, Mayflower Society, and Daughters of Norway. But I have always wondered, how does one go about proving this or certifying the paperwork?

Beryana has it pretty well. I used to be Chapter Registrar for my old DAR chapter, and have a lot of the information at hand.

If your aunt is already in the DAR, Mayflower Society, and/or the Daughters of Norway, you usually only need to prove your relationship to them. Since your grandparents are her parents, you'll just have to show that your parent is his/her sister, and proof that you exist. When you get a certified copy of your birth certificate, be sure to say that it's for genealogical purposes, so that it will show your parents!

Otherwise, I'd start with printing out a worksheet - you can print it out at DAR forms. Scroll down to the middle of the page for Membership & Genealogy and print out the four forms (I'd print out several of the actual worksheet - you'll probably need them!). It will show you which proofs you'll need - usually one Primary source (ie: birth certificate, marriage license, court records) or a preponderance of Secondary evidence (census, death certificate,

One thing that the site doesn't tell you is to make copies of EVERYTHING, and never send in originals! I also put each of my lineages in a separate loose leaf notebook - just in case you need to find the proofs for something else.

If you have any questions, PM me. I'll try to help the best I can.

[Beryana]

Originally Posted by honeychile

When you get a certified copy of your birth certificate, be sure to say that it's for genealogical purposes, so that it will show your parents!

One thing that the site doesn't tell you is to make copies of EVERYTHING, and never send in originals! I also put each of my lineages in a separate loose leaf notebook - just in case you need to find the proofs for something else.

What I have actually done is just make copies of the original, certified certificates (oxymoron?!) and keep only the copies in the house. I have all my originals in labeled envelopes in my safe deposit box (with transcripts, membership pins, passports, etc). That way I don't run as much of a risk of losing the originals and know I can mark up what I have in the house, etc. Vital records can get REALLY expensive fast - and some states recently jacked up their prices (WI jumped from $7 for marriage and death to $20!). Some states will also offer the option of a document stamped "not for identification" which has all the same data just is not 'certified'. Lineage societies will also accept these kinds of copies (but you will want to double check that with the actual society - I know all the groups I have joined accepted them).

I'm willing to help as well.

[honeychile]

Both my mother & I lucked out on two things:

1) One Colonial book series which seems to track my ancestors from place to place (I ended up finding the series at a rare book dealer - worth its weight in gold!) and

2) A major sale on loose leaf binders & archivally safe top loading pages.

We've put our certificates in the front of each of the binders, then put our applications & proofs in each. So we have several copies of a few pages, but we know where they are, and in the proper order!

What we need to do is to make a few travel drives and put them in the safe deposit box.