Real Daughters are early DAR members who were the actual daughters of an American patriot, just one generation removed from the Revolution itself. Joseph Habersham Chapter played a pivotal role in ensuring that the NSDAR acknowledged their unique position (see below).
From the Diamond Jubilee yearbook, 1900 – 1975 and chapter scrapbooks compiled between 1910 and 1930.
| Daughter of | |
| Bass, Mrs. Elizabeth Smith | Henry Smith |
| Bennett, Mrs. Maria Rhoe Johnson | Archibald Johnson |
| Berry, Mrs. Oliver P. (Maria Young) | John Young, SC |
| Carleton, Mrs. James (Eliza Majors) | Samuel D. Majors, VA |
| Chalker, Mrs. Rebecca Land | Thomas Land |
| Copeland, Mrs. Sallie Akers | James Copeland, VA |
| Covington, Mrs. Sallie J. Furguson | Robert Furguson |
| Daniels, Mrs. Regina Hills | Hiram Hills, SC |
| Gibson, Mrs. F. M. (Laura Anderson) | William Anderson |
| Gilbert, Elizabeth | Michael Gilbert, PA |
| Glass, Mrs. Jane Oliver | John Oliver, GA |
| Griffin, Mrs. Mary Caroline Roberts | George Roberts, NC |
| Hall, Mary Bibb | Bolling Hall, VA |
| Heffner, Mrs. George (Clarissa Jones) | William Jones |
| Jordan, Mrs. C.S. (Tamron Frances Furguson) | Robert Furguson, VA |
| Maddox, Mrs. Dudley (Ruth Dobbs) | Nathan Dobbs, VA |
| Matthews, Mrs. Sarah West | Benjamin West, SC |
| McNeely, Mrs. John (Mary Scruggs) | Richard Scruggs, VA & NC |
| Messick, Mrs. Nancy A. Belcher | Robert Belcher, SC |
| Monroe, Mrs. Frances Griffin | Joseph Griffin, SC |
| Myers, Mrs. J.P. (Annie Gross) | ? |
| Packard, Mrs. Rebekah Rose | Russell Rose |
| Phipps, Mrs. Polly Allen | ? |
| Redding, Mrs. Thomas P. (Anna Marie Anderson) | William Anderson, VA |
| Rodgers, Mrs. Martha Penn | William Penn, ? |
| Story, Mrs. Mary McBride Thompson | Andrew Thompson, SC |
| Way, Mrs. Samuel J. (Olivia Tuckerman Axson) | Samuel Jacob Axson, SC |
| Whilden, Mrs. Rebecca Gilbert | Michael Gilbert, PA |
| Wilson, Mrs. Pauline Allen | ? |
At the 19th. Continental Congress, Mrs. William Lawson Peel, National Chairman of the Real Daughters Committee, announced the placing of a marble bust of the first Real Daughter, Mary Hammond Washington, a Georgian, in Memorial Continental Hall.
We regret that we cannot provide lineage information. The information on this page cannot be used as proof of service or lineage for purposes of joining DAR. For membership inquiries, please contact our chapter or fill out the membership interest form on the NSDAR website at http://members.dar.org/dar/darnet/pmd/prospective.cfm
Note: the following letter from our chapter registrar refers to the article on "Real Daughters" in the Sep/Oct issue of American Spirit. The letter was published in a slightly edited form in the January/February 2008 issue.
To the editor:
I loved the article about the Real Daughters in the magazine, but I was disappointed that Joseph Habersham Chapter was not mentioned. Our Lucy Peel put the whole thing in motion. Your readers may be interested in the following information.
The Atlanta Constitution used to have a DAR column, and Mrs. Peel, our chapter founder, used that vehicle to ask for any woman whose father fought in the Revolution, especially Georgians but not limited to Georgians, to submit their application to join Joseph Habersham chapter. In 1900, Mrs. Peel gave a report at the State Conference. The State Regent was Mrs. Robert Emory Park, and she "commended in warm terms the efforts of the Joseph Habersham Chapter in finding Real Daughters. She stated that they perhaps had as many on their roll as any Chapter in the United States and would probably have more." (from 1900 State Proceedings)In 1900, 16 Real Daughters belonged to our chapter, and in 1903 the Regent, Mrs. John M. Graham, reported "31 Real Daughters enrolled since the foundation of the Chapter in 1900 . . . nine have died."
In 1906 Mrs. Peel (Mrs. William Lawson Peel), and Mrs. Laura Wentworth Fowler of MA presented resolutions to the DAR Congress, and a pension was granted to all Real Daughters by the National Society. Mrs. Peel was appointed by President General Mrs. Donald McLean as the first national chairman of the Real Daughters Committee (1905).
Jane Frazer, Registrar
Joseph Habersham Chapter
Atlanta, GA