List of members of the Sons of the American Revolution
The Sons of the American Revolution (SAR) is a United States patriotic and lineage organization founded in 1889. The following is a list of notable members since the organization's founding.
Heads of State
Presidents of the United States
To date, 17 presidents of the United States have been members of the SAR. President Grant was admitted posthumously in recognition of his being a member of the Sons of Revolutionary Sires, whose members were later admitted to membership in the SAR.
- Ulysses S. Grant (posthumous)[1][2] 18th
- Rutherford B. Hayes[3] 19th
- Benjamin Harrison[3] 23rd
- William McKinley[3] 25th
- Theodore Roosevelt[3] 26th
- William Howard Taft[3] 27th
- Warren G. Harding[3] 29th
- Calvin Coolidge[3] 30th
- Herbert Hoover[3] 31st
- Franklin D. Roosevelt[3] 32nd
- Harry S. Truman[3] 33rd
- Dwight D. Eisenhower[3] 34th
- Lyndon B. Johnson[3] 36th
- Gerald R. "Jerry" Ford[3] 38th
- James Earl "Jimmy" Carter[3] 39th
- George H. W. Bush[3] 41st
- George W. Bush[3] 43rd
Of the presidents who lived since the SAR's founding in 1889 and are not listed above, presidents Grover Cleveland, Richard Nixon, Bill Clinton, Barack Obama, and Joe Biden all had patriot ancestors but did not join the SAR.[4] Presidents Woodrow Wilson, John F. Kennedy, Ronald Reagan, and Donald Trump did not have patriot ancestors.[5]
President Joe Biden, then a United States Senator, was awarded a Gold Good Citizenship Medal by The Delaware Society of the Sons of the American Revolution in 1999.[6]
Of the 22 presidents who served prior to the founding of the SAR, six qualify as patriot ancestors – George Washington, John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, James Monroe and Andrew Jackson. Two others, Grant and Hayes, were members of SAR. Of the remaining 14, all except for Martin Van Buren had patriot ancestors.
Vice presidents of the United States
In addition to the above, the following vice presidents were SAR compatriots and later became President of the United States: Theodore Roosevelt, Calvin Coolidge, Harry S Truman, Lyndon Johnson, Gerald Ford and George H.W. Bush.
National leaders outside the United States
- HM Juan Carlos I – King of Spain[7]
- HM Felipe VI of Spain – King of Spain[8]
- Rt. Hon. Sir Winston Churchill KG, OM, CH, TD, FRS – Prime Minister of the United Kingdom[9]
Nobel Prize recipients
Nobel Peace Prize recipients
- President Theodore Roosevelt
- President Jimmy Carter
- Vice President Charles G. Dawes
- Secretary of State Elihu Root
- Secretary of State Frank B. Kellogg
Nobel Prize for Literature recipient
Military
Medal of Honor recipients
The following 40 SAR Compatriots are known to have received the United States Congressional Medal of Honor. It is possible that there are other Medal of Honor recipients who were SAR Compatriots. The number received for each conflict is as follows: Civil War – 16, Indian Wars – 6, Spanish–American War – 3, Philippines – 2, Vera Cruz – 1, Peacetime – 3, World War II – 7, Vietnam – 2.
(The rank indicated is the highest held by the individual and not necessarily that held at the time the Medal of Honor was earned or awarded.)
- General of the Army Douglas MacArthur, USA – Legendary general[10] (General MacArthur approved an SAR service medal, the Patriot Medal, bearing his likeness, and was the first recipient following his death in 1964.)[11]
- General Jonathan Wainwright, USA – Commanded the defense of the Philippines.
- Admiral Frank F. Fletcher – Commander of the Vera Cruz intervention.
- Lieutenant General Nelson A. Miles, USA – U.S. Army Commanding General, 1895–1903.
- Vice Admiral James Bond Stockdale, USN – Prisoner of War in Vietnam.
- Major General Patrick Brady, USA – Vietnam War helicopter pilot.
- Major General Adolphus Greely, USA – Civil War veteran and Arctic explorer.
- Major General Theodore S. Peck, VTNG – Adjutant General of Vermont
- Major General William R. Shafter, USA – Commanded the Fifth Army Corps during the Siege of Santiago.
- Major General David S. Stanley, USV – hero of the Battle of Franklin during the Civil War.
- Brevet Major General Lewis Addison Grant, USV – Assistant Secretary of War.
- Brevet Major General Rufus Saxton, USV – Defended Harper's Ferry during the Civil War.
- Brevet Major General Orlando Willcox, USA – Wounded in action at the Battle of Bull Run.
- Rear Admiral Richard E. Byrd Jr., USN – Aviator and Antarctic explorer.
- Brigadier General Theodore Roosevelt Jr., AUS – Landed at Utah Beach on D-Day.
- Brigadier General John B. Babcock, USA – Veteran of the Civil War and the Indian Wars.
- Brigadier General Joseph Foss, SDANG – Marine fighter pilot and Governor of South Dakota.
- Brigadier General Horatio Collins King, NYNG
- Brigadier General Oscar F. Long, USA – Served in the campaign against Chief Joseph.
- Brigadier General Edmund Rice, USA – Earned the Medal of Honor at the Battle of Gettysburg.
- Brevet Brigadier General Byron Mac Cutcheon, USV – Brigade commander during the Civil War.
- Brevet Brigadier General Horace Porter, USV – President General of the SAR from 1892 to 1897.
- Brevet Brigadier General Philip S. Post, USV – Civil War veteran and U.S. Representative.
- Brevet Brigadier General Edward W. Whitaker, USV – Cavalry officer during the Civil War.
- Colonel John C. Gresham, USA
- Colonel Charles H. Heyl, USA
- Colonel Theodore Roosevelt, USV – Hero of the Battle of San Juan Hill.
- Brevet Colonel Clinton A. Cilley, USV
- Lieutenant Colonel Bernard A. Byrne, USV
- Brevet Lieutenant Colonel George G. Benedict, USV
- Major Robert Hugo Dunlap, USMC – Commanded a company of Marines at Iwo Jima.
- Major John Alexander Logan Jr., USV
- Brevet Major Ira H. Evans, USV
- Surgeon John O. Skinner, USA
- Captain George Washington Brush, USV – Commanded a company of the 34th United States Colored Troops (USCT).
- Lieutenant William Lowell Hill, USN – Rescued a sailor from drowning.
- First Lieutenant Powhatan H. Clarke, USA – Commanded African-American Cavalrymen (a.k.a. "Buffalo Soldiers") against Apache Indians.
- Chief Warrant Officer Hershel W. Williams, USMCR – Last surviving World War II Medal of Honor recipient.
- Technical Sergeant Charles H. Coolidge, USA – Infantry soldier who served in France during World War II.
- Sergeant John D. Hawk, USA – Earned the Medal of Honor at the Battle of the Falaise Pocket.
Military and naval officers
- Admiral of the Navy George Dewey – Hero of the Battle of Manila Bay
- General of the Armies Ulysses S. Grant – Commanding General of the Union Army and President of the United States
- General of the Armies John J. Pershing – U.S. Army Chief of Staff and commander of the American Expeditionary Force in the First World War
- General of the Army Dwight Eisenhower – Supreme Commander of Allied Forces Europe
- General of the Air Force Henry H. Arnold, USAF – Commander of the U.S. Army Air Force in World War II
- Fleet Admiral William F. Halsey – Commander of the 3rd Fleet in World War II
- General Joseph E. Johnston, CSA – Confederate general
- General Frederick Kroesen – Vice Chief of Staff of the United States Army
- General James N. Mattis, USMC – 26th Secretary of Defense and Commander the United States Joint Forces Command 2007 to 2010.
- General Charles P. Summerall – U.S. Army Chief of Staff and president of The Citadel
- General William C. Westmoreland – Commander of Military Assistance Command Vietnam (MACV)
- Admiral Thomas H. Moorer – Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff
- Admiral David Dixon Porter – Senior admiral of the U.S. Navy from 1870 to 1891
- Admiral Harry D. Train II – NATO Supreme Allied Commander Atlantic
- Lieutenant General Simon B. Buckner, CSA – Veteran of the Civil War and Governor of Kentucky
- Lieutenant General Joseph Wheeler, CSA – Veteran of the Civil War and the Spanish–American War
- Lieutenant General Theodore G. Stroup, USA – Deputy Chief of Staff, Personnel
- Lieutenant General Guy Swan, USA – Commanding General, 5th US Army
- Lieutenant General David Ohle, USA – Deputy Chief of Staff, Personnel
- Vice Admiral James Bond Stockdale, USN – President of the Naval War College
- Major General James A. Adkins, USA – 28th Adjutant General of Maryland
- Major General Thomas M. Anderson – Veteran of the Civil War, Spanish–American War and the Philippine Insurrection
- Major General Joseph Cabell Breckinridge Sr., USV – Veteran of the Civil War and the Spanish–American War
- Major General Donald Burdick, USA – Director, Army National Guard
- Major General Darius N. Couch, USV – Union Army general during the Civil War
- Major General Frederick D. Grant, USV – Son of President Ulysses S. Grant
- Major General Ulysses S. Grant III – Grandson of President Ulysses S. Grant
- Major General Curtis Guild Jr., MVM – Governor of Massachusetts
- Major General William Henry Fitzhugh Lee, CSA – Son of General Robert E. Lee
- Major General George Owen Squier USA, – Chief Signal Officer of the United States Army in World War I, inventor of telephone carrier multiplexing in 1910 and Muzak background music
- Rear Admiral Charles Johnston Badger – Superintendent of the United States Naval Academy
- Rear Admiral John R. Bartlett – Oceanographer
- Rear Admiral George Belknap
- Rear Admiral Charles Edgar Clark – Captain of the battleship USS Oregon during the Spanish–American War
- Rear Admiral Walter S. Crosley – Navy Cross recipient
- Rear Admiral Lewis A. Kimberly
- Rear Admiral Winfield Scott Schley – Hero of the Battle of Santiago de Cuba
- Rear Admiral Yates Stirling – Veteran of the American Civil War and the Spanish–American War
- Rear Admiral John L. Worden – Commander of the USS Monitor
- Brigadier General James Devereux, USMC – Recipient of the Navy Cross and congressman
- Brigadier General Charles Wheaton Abbot Jr., RING – Adjutant General of Rhode Island
- Brigadier General George Andrews – Adjutant General of the United States Army
- Brigadier General George Lippitt Andrews
- Brigadier General William H. Bisbee – Veteran of the Civil War and Spanish–American War (lived to age 102)[12]
- Brigadier General Charles A. Coolidge – Veteran of the Civil War and Spanish–American War.
- Brigadier General Charles Duke, USAF – Apollo 16 lunar module pilot.
- Brigadier General Elisha Dyer Jr., RIM – Adjutant General of Rhode Island
- Brigadier General Winfield Scott Edgerly – Veteran of the Indian Wars and the Spanish–American War.
- Brigadier General James Roosevelt, USMCR – Recipient of the Navy Cross and the Silver Star.
- Brigadier General George Miller Sternberg – U.S. Army Surgeon General.
- Brigadier General Charles Foster Tillinghast Sr., RING – Veteran of the Spanish–American War and World War I
- Brevet Brigadier General Edwin S. Greeley, USV – Union Veteran of the Civil War
- Commodore Alfred Brooks Fry, NYNM - Civil engineer and commander of the New York Naval Militia.
- Captain Charles V. Gridley, USN – Captain of the USS Olympia at the Battle of Manila Bay.
- Captain Blake Wayne Van Leer, USN – Recipient of the Legion of Merit and Moreell Medal.
- Colonel William Hayward – Commander of the Harlem Hellfighters during World War I.
- Colonel Ashley Chadbourne McKinley, USAF – Photographer on first flight over the South Pole.
- Colonel Theodore Roosevelt, USV – Spanish–American War veteran and leader of the Rough Riders.
- Lieutenant Colonel John Q. Cannon, USV – Spanish-American War veteran and excommunicated Mormon leader.
- Lieutenant Colonel Russell Benjamin Harrison, USV – Veteran of the Spanish–American War and son of President Benjamin Harrison.
- Lieutenant Colonel Archibald Roosevelt, AUS – Veteran of both world wars and four time recipient of the Silver Star.
- Commander Franklin Roosevelt Jr., USN – Recipient of the Silver Star and Congressman.
- Major Washington Irving Lincoln Adams, NA – Politician, banker and veteran of World War I, descendant of President John Adams and president general of the SAR from 1922 to 1923.
- Major Archibald Butt, USA – Presidential aide who died on the RMS Titanic.
- Major Kermit Roosevelt, AUS – Served in the British and American armies in both world wars and recipient of the Military Cross.
- Brevet Major Augustus P. Davis, USV – Founder of the Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War.
Public officials
Cabinet officers
- Charles F. Adams III – Secretary of the Navy
- Russell A. Alger – United States Secretary of War
- Joseph W. Barr – Secretary of the Treasury
- Herbert Hoover – Secretary of Commerce
- Charles Evans Hughes (honorary) – Supreme Court Chief Justice, Secretary of State and Governor of New York
- Frank B. Kellogg – Secretary of State
- Jim Mattis - General and United States Secretary of Defense[13]
- Franklin Roosevelt – Assistant Secretary of the Navy
- Theodore Roosevelt – Assistant Secretary of the Navy
- Elihu Root – Secretary of War and Secretary of State
- Donald Rumsfeld – Secretary of Defense
- John Sherman – Secretary of State, Secretary of the Treasury and United States Senator, author of the Sherman Anti-Trust Act
- Henry L. Stimson – Secretary of War during World War II
Diplomats
- Angier Biddle Duke – Ambassador to Denmark
- David Jayne Hill – Ambassador to Germany
- John Langeloth Loeb Jr. – Ambassador to Denmark
- Thomas W. Palmer – Ambassador to Spain
- Horace Porter – Ambassador to France
- G. Mennen Williams – Ambassador to the Philippines
- Henry L. Wilson – Diplomat and Ambassador to Mexico 1909–1913
Governors
- Sherman Adams – Governor of New Hampshire and chief of staff to President Eisenhower
- Russell A. Alger – Governor of Michigan[14]
- Augustus O. Bourn – Governor of Rhode Island
- Simon B. Buckner – Governor of Kentucky
- Morgan Bulkeley – Governor of Connecticut, United States Senator, Mayor of Hartford and longtime president of Aetna Insurance
- Harry F. Byrd – Governor and United States senator from Virginia
- Elias Carr – Governor of North Carolina
- Lawton Chiles – U.S. Senator and Governor of Florida
- Owen Vincent Coffin – Governor of Connecticut
- Channing H. Cox – Governor of Massachusetts
- Cushman Kellogg Davis – Governor of Minnesota
- Thomas E. Dewey – Governor of New York and presidential candidate
- Elisha Dyer Jr. – Governor of Rhode Island
- Charles Edison – Governor of New Jersey and son of Thomas Edison
- Bob Ehrlich – Governor of Maryland
- Phillips Lee Goldsborough – Governor of Maryland
- Robert S. Green – Governor of New Jersey
- Curtis Guild Jr. – Governor of Massachusetts
- Lucius F. Hubbard – Governor of Minnesota and brigadier general during the Spanish–American War
- Robert Floyd Kennon – Governor of Louisiana
- Charles D. Kimball – Governor of Rhode Island
- Charles W. Lippitt – Governor of Rhode Island
- Arch A. Moore Jr. – Governor of West Virginia
- Levi P. Morton – Vice President of the U.S. and Governor of New York
- Franklin Murphy – Governor of New Jersey
- Martin O'Malley – Governor of Maryland and presidential candidate
- Chase Osborn – Governor of Michigan
- Rick Perry – Governor of Texas[15]
- Henry Roberts – Governor of Connecticut
- Nelson A. Rockefeller – Governor of New York and Vice President of the United States
- Winthrop Rockefeller – Governor of Arkansas
- Theodore Roosevelt – Governor of New York
- John G. Rowland – Governor of Connecticut
- Leverett Saltonstall – Governor of Massachusetts
- Royal C. Taft – Governor of Rhode Island
- Edwin Warfield – Governor of Maryland
- G. Mennen Williams – Governor of Michigan
- Charles S. Whitman – Governor of New York
- Rollin S. Woodruff – Governor of Connecticut
United States senators
- Lamar Alexander – United States senator from Tennessee
- Russell A. Alger – United States senator from Michigan
- Scott Brown – United States senator from Massachusetts
- Quentin N. Burdick – United States senator from North Dakota
- Harry F. Byrd Jr. – United States senator from Virginia
- Royal S. Copeland – United States senator from New York
- Cushman Kellogg Davis - United States senator from Minnesota
- Chauncey M. Depew – United States senator, member of the Skull and Bones Society and President of the Empire State Society of the SAR from 1890 to 1899
- Sam Ervin – United States senator and Distinguished Service Cross recipient
- William P. Frye – United States senator from Maine
- Barry M. Goldwater – United States senator from Arizona and presidential candidate
- Chuck Grassley - United States senator from Iowa and President pro tempore of the United States Senate
- Marcus A. Hanna – United States senator from New York
- Hamilton Fish Kean – United States senator from New Jersey
- Kenneth B. Keating – United States senator from New York and Ambassador to India and Israel
- Henry F. Lippitt – United States senator from Rhode Island
- Henry Cabot Lodge – United States senator from Massachusetts[16]
- John S. McCain, III – United States senator from Arizona
- Mitch McConnell – United States senator from Kentucky and United States Senate Minority Leader
- Jesse H. Metcalf – United States senator from Rhode Island
- John Holmes Overton – United States senator from Louisiana
- Thomas W. Palmer – United States senator from Michigan
- Gary Peters – United States senator from Michigan[17]
- Orville H. Platt – United States senator from Connecticut
- Leverett Saltonstall – United States senator and governor of Massachusetts
- Rick Scott — United States senator and former governor of Florida
- Robert Taft Jr. – United States senator from Ohio
- Herman Talmadge – United States senator from Georgia
- Strom Thurmond – United States senator from South Carolina
- John Tower – United States senator from Texas
- Roger Wicker – United States senator from Mississippi
U.S. representatives
- Richard S. Aldrich – U.S. representative from Rhode Island
- Hale Boggs – Majority Leader, U.S. House of Representatives[18]
- Colonel William Campbell Preston Breckinridge, CSA – U.S. representative from Kentucky
- Charles E. Chamberlain – U.S. representative from Michigan
- Byron M. Cutcheon – U.S. representative from Michigan
- Brigadier General James P. S. Devereux, USMC – U.S. representative and Navy Cross recipient
- Charles H. Grosvenor – U.S. representative
- Gilbert Gude – U.S. representative
- Jefferson M. Levy – U.S. representative and owner of Monticello
- John J. Rhodes – U.S. representative for 30 years
- Franklin Delano Roosevelt Jr. – U.S. representative
- Henry Stockbridge – U.S. representative
- David Jenkins Ward – U.S. representative
- Bob Wilson – U.S. representative from California
Judges
- William Howard Taft – Chief Justice of the United States
- David Josiah Brewer – Associate justice of the Supreme Court
- George E. Bushnell – Chief Justice of the Michigan Supreme Court
Other public officials
- Colonel Louis R. Cheney – Mayor of Hartford, Connecticut
- Arthur W. Coolidge – Lieutenant Governor of Massachusetts
- George P. Cronk – Los Angeles City Council member, 1945–52
- Arthur W. Dennis – Lieutenant Governor of Rhode Island
- Seymour Lowman – Lieutenant Governor of New York
- Wallace McCamant – Federal judge
- Winthrop Paul Rockefeller – Lieutenant Governor of Arkansas
- Theodore Roosevelt – Police commissioner of New York City
- Ernest E. Rogers – Lieutenant Governor of Connecticut
Other notable members
- Henry L. P. Beckwith Jr. – Genealogist and historian
- Thomas W. Bicknell – Educator and anti-segregationist
- Luther Blount – Inventor and shipyard owner
- George Madison Bodge – Author, historian, and genealogist
- John Nicholas Brown II – Philanthropist
- Charles W. Burpee – Newspaper editor
- John Q. Cannon - Excommunicated Mormon leader.
- Nick Clooney - American journalist, anchorman, and television host. He is the father of actor George Timothy Clooney
- Edward Miner Gallaudet – Founder of the Columbia Institution for the Deaf
- Henry Louis Gates, Jr – Professor and chairman of the African American Studies Program at Harvard University[19][20] and television host
- Elbridge Thomas Gerry – Social reformer and commodore of the New York Yacht Club
- Benjamin Apthorp Gould – astronomer
- John B. Hattendorf – Naval historian and professor at the United States Naval War College
- William Randolph Hearst – Newspaper publisher and U.S. Representative
- William Randolph Hearst Jr. – Newspaper editor
- Benjamin Newhall Johnson – Attorney and historian
- William Ingraham Koch - American billionaire businessman, sailor, collector and 1992 winner of America's Cup
- William Osborn McDowell – Founder of the SAR
- Frederick Law Olmsted – Landscape architect and designer of Central Park
- Norman Vincent Peale – Author and minister
- H. Paul Pressler – Texas appeals court justice and leader of the Conservative Resurgence in the Southern Baptist Convention
- John D. Rockefeller – Oil refiner
- Theodore Roosevelt – Author and conservationist
- Adam Schnelting - Soldier and Missouri politician[21]
- Elliott Fitch Shepard – lawyer and newspaper owner[22]
- Ricky Skaggs - Country and Bluegrass Musician[23]
- George Albert Smith – President of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
- John Spencer-Churchill – Artist and nephew of Winston Churchill
- Lowell Thomas – Author and news reporter
- George Washington Vanderbilt II – Owner of the Biltmore estate
- Edgar Williamson Jr. – Insurance executive
- James Woods - actor and producer
References
- (President Grant died in 1885 – prior to the founding of the S.A.R. – but he was a member of the "Sons of Revolutionary Sires". Though it had no direct connection with the SAR, its members were later granted admission to the Sons of the American Revolution after its organization if they so desired.)
- "U.S. Presidents Who Are SAR Members" (PDF). California SAR. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2009-10-15. Retrieved 2009-10-15.
- "The California Compatriot" (PDF). California Society SAR. Spring 2007. p. 23. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2007-09-28. Retrieved 2007-09-04.
- Frederick, Don (December 12, 2007). "Barack Obama's family tree grows and grows". Los Angeles Times.
- Child, Christopher C. (21 February 2022). "Patriotic presidential ancestors". New England Historic Genealogical Society, American Ancestors.
- The Delaware Society of the Sons of the American Revolution https://dessar.org/cpage.php?pt=30. Retrieved 6 June 2023.
{{cite web}}
: Missing or empty|title=
(help) - "Stony Point Battle Chapter Sons of the American Revolution". Archived from the original on 2018-03-08. Retrieved 2019-04-11.
- "Spain Society Sons of the American Revolution". Spain Society Sons of the American Revolution.
- "History of the Dream". Sons of the American Revolution. Archived from the original on 2013-01-25.
- "SAR Handbook, VIII" (PDF). p. 6. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2006-10-04.
- "Patriot Medal". SAR Store.
- "William Henry Bisbee". Arlington National Cemetery. Retrieved 2019-05-04.
- Paul, Richard R (Summer 2021). ""General James N. Mattis"". Sons of the American Revolution Magazine. 116 (1): 19.
- "The Political Graveyard: Sons of the American Revolution, politicians, Michigan". politicalgraveyard.com. Retrieved 2020-04-21.
- "Texas SAR". www.txssar.org.
- "The Founders & Patriots of America". www.founderspatriots.org.
- "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2016-03-04. Retrieved 2014-10-14.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - "The Political Graveyard: Sons of the American Revolution, politicians, District of Columbia". politicalgraveyard.com.
- "Sons of American Revolution welcome Gates". Harvard University Gazette. Archived from the original on 4 June 2011. Retrieved 15 January 2011.
- NSSAR Membership Roster 2009
- "Representative Adam Schnelting". house.mo.gov. Retrieved 2022-11-15.
- Homans, James E., ed. (1918). The Cyclopedia of American Biography. The Press Association Compilers. pp. 299–300.
- Vest, Stephen M (Spring 2021). "A Big Year for Ricky Skaggs". Sons of the American Revolution Magazine. 115 (4): 8.