The Missouri State Society Daughters of the American Revolution (MSSDAR) was organized in 1894. Anna Ewing Cockerell was Missouri’s first state regent, and organizing regent of the Elizabeth Benton Chapter, National Society Daughters of the American Revolution (NSDAR or DAR), Kansas City, Missouri, the oldest DAR chapter in the state of Missouri.
Missouri currently has approximately 5,500 members located throughout the state. For 130 years, Missouri Daughters have supported the objectives of the National Society. Daughters share a love of country and are bound together by a rich heritage that directly contributed to the privileges we enjoy today.
We represent the thousands of men and women who fought to obtain our American independence and establish a nation based upon individual rights and freedom of choice. We proudly sponsor programs and activities encouraging education, patriotism, and historic preservation. We honor our American Patriots and all who serve or have served in national defense, including all branches of the armed forces and first responders.
Properties
Properties owned by the Missouri State Society DAR include Roslyn Heights and the historic Cold Water Cemetery, in Florissant, Missouri. The State Society is also responsible for maintaining trail markers, including the beautiful Madonna of the Trail in Lexington, Missouri, and the Missouri Period Room at the National DAR Headquarters in Washington, D.C.
Missouri State Flag
For more than a century after achieving statehood, Missouri did not have an official flag. The idea for a flag originated in 1908 when the Daughters of the American Revolution formed a committee to look into designing a state flag. Marie Watkins Oliver, State Regent (1910-1912), member of Nancy Hunter Chapter, NSDAR, in Cape Girardeau, Missouri, and wife of Senator Robert Burett Oliver, was the head of the committee. Marie Oliver eventually designed the flag herself, and on March 17, 1909, a bill supporting the design was introduced to the Missouri Senate.
Genealogy Research
The DAR is generally recognized as a lineage society because of its membership eligibility requirements and extensive genealogy research. In recent years, through the use of computer technology, the DAR has constructed a vast computer database to share historical documents and records. This is a free service provided by the National Society Daughters of the American Revolution. Visit the National Society’s website for more information: Genealogical Research System.
Missouri Daughters were instrumental in the founding of the Jackson County Genealogical Society and starting the Midwest Genealogy Center in Independence, Missouri, in 1928. It is now considered to be one of the best genealogy libraries in the nation.
Programs
Missouri Daughters on the Missouri DAR State Speakers Staff Committee may be invited to present programs to your group or organization. Contact our state chair for a list of topics and speakers available in your area.