Historic Preservation Grants

The purpose of the DAR Historic Preservation Grant program is to give financial support to projects in local communities that exemplify the mission of the National Society Daughters of the American Revolution (NSDAR) to promote historic preservation. Here are a few photos from some of our 2020-2023 grant winners. To learn more about Historic Preservation Grants and how to apply, visit: www.dar.org/grants.

The Tennessee State Museum in Nashville, Tenn., recently acquired a very rare circa 1807 Tennessee militia o¬fficer’s coatee with ties to John Sevier, the state’s first governor. The coat belonged to Lieutenant William Graham (1786–1857) of Jefferson County, Tenn., who served in the 6th Tennessee Militia Regiment from 1807–1815. Thanks in part to a DAR Historic Preservation Grant sponsored by the Tennessee State Society, the museum will soon be able to display this rare article of clothing along with Lt. Gr

The Seminole County Historical Society recently accepted the donation of a rare collection of historical American-made horse-drawn carriages ranging from the late 1700s to the early 1900s.Thanks to a DAR Historic Preservation Grant sponsored by the Sallie Harrison Chapter, Sanford, Fla., this rare buggy will soon be granted new life as an educational tool. The museum is working with a local conservator, Diana Galante, to first clean the buggy with a HEPA-type vacuum to remove rust, deterioration, dust and p

Dr. James Fite, grandson of Revolutionary War soldier Leonard Fite, built the two-story, Federal-style Fite-Fessenden House shortly after purchasing the plot in 1869. Dr. Fite lived there with his wife, Emma, and their three children, Albert, Margaret and Marie. Margaret opened a school for elementary school-age children in the house in 1891, which she operated until she married her second husband in 1917. Virginia Wooten then reloc

The funds from a DAR Historic Preservation Grant, sponsored by Margaret Gaston Chapter, helped replace and restore many of the wooden elements on the front elevation of the house. The shutters were replaced with exact replicas; the lintels above the windows and the windowsills were scraped, sanded and repainted, as were the front door and the sidelights—a painstakingly slow project taking weeks to complete.

The Morris-Jumel Mansion, built for Colonel Roger Morris as a summer retreat in 1765, is the oldest house in Manhattan. The Morris family fled their home once the Revolutionary War began, and the house stood mostly vacant until General George Washington used it as a headquarters in late 1776. Though the home’s location proved pivotal to the victory of the Battle of Harlem Heights, Washington and his men were soon forced to retreat, and Hessian soldiers took over the house. In 1810, Stephen Jumel, a French w

With help from a DAR Historic Preservation Grant facilitated by the Knickerbocker DAR Chapter, caretakers of the Morris-Jumel Mansion have been able to restore and preserve three chairs in the French Parlor, a formal salon that includes some of the furniture with the alleged connection to Napoleon. The chairs are made of mahogany and colloquially called “swan chairs” due to elaborate carvings of a swan on the arms. These French Empire chairs date back to the 1820s and, along with other pieces in the suite,

The Old Fort Pierce marker in Fort Pierce, Florida, was originally dedicated in 1925 to mark the spot of a U.S. Army supply depot used during the Second Seminole War. Sometime in 1980, the marker went missing from the monument and was replaced by a marker created by a Boy Scout for his Eagle Scout project. In 1981, the original DAR marker was found and returned to the Cora Stickney Harper Chapter of the DAR. An arrangement was made to have both the DAR and the Boy Scouts’ marker installed on the site. Resto

Part of the permanent collection of the Columbia County Historical Society, these 19th century portraits depict members of the prominent Livingston family – Margaret Livingston Livingston and her fourth son, Moncrieffe Livingston. Both descend from Robert R. Livingston, a signer of the Declaration of Independence, who later served as U.S. Minister of France where he negotiated the Louisiana Purchase, and the nation’s first Secretary of Foreign Affairs. The portrait of Margaret dates to ca. 1800 and is attri

The Driver Opera House was built in 1883 by Josephus Driver, the patriarch of a prominent Darlington, Wisconsin family and was long the cultural center of Darlington and Lafayette counties. It is located on the second floor of a two-story building. The Opera House hosted traveling theatre groups for much of its history and was last used on St. Patrick’s Day, 1951, for an American Legion dance. The Driver Opera House Board of Directors, a nonprofit, purchased the building in December of 2012, rescuing it fro

The Thompson House in Setakut, New York, built ca. 1709, was home to five generations of the Thompson family, one of whom was farmer and physician Doctor Samuel Thompson. Thompson was a prestigious member of the Setauket community who treated many local residents. Members of George Washington's Culper Spy Ring are listed in his "Cash Receipt Book," c.1787, which lists his patients. Further research strongly indicates he was probably a member of George Washington's Culper Spy Ring. Today the five-room saltbo

The Historic Rock Chapel in Heidelberg, PA is currently managed by the York Springs United Methodist Church, but dates to the time of the founding of the country. It was constructed between 1773 and 1776 by local families influenced by the visit of John Wesley, the founder of Methodism, who stopped nearby on one of his preaching trips around the colonies. It was the site of large religious revival meetings in the 19th century and during the American Civil War, was used as a hideout for provisions by the Uni

Loudon County, Virginia is lucky enough to have preserved and maintained all municipal historic records related to the County since its establishment in 1757, but these records require funds for their upkeep. Preservation of these records has been aided over the years by the Ketoctin Chapter of the NSDAR. This latest effort, made possible by a DAR Historic grant sponsored by the chapter, aided the conservation and restoration of the Loudon County 1773-86 Tithable books.

A group of people walk across the hall over a floorcloth’s simple block pattern in red, mustard, and black with a chandelier hanging above them and a marble bust in the corner of the hallway.

An old records book yellowed with age written in pen with scripted font that contains accounts from Patrick Henry, George Mason, Thomas Jefferson, and James Madison lies open.

Replacement of the deteriorated tamarack logs built on Fort Winnebago Surgeons Quarters.

New installation of lime-based chinking at the Fort Winnebago Surgeons Quarters.

A woman scans records on a light box while looking at it transmitted onto the computer.

Teal blue house with dark blue shutters in front of a bright blue sky with clouds.

Maroon Greek revival home with white pillars and diamond pattern railings.

18th century brick fireplace with a behive oven and dark wooden mantle around the fireplace.

A red barn house with french doors and white trim and a white lookout on top of the roof.

A wedding dress of brownish light peach iridescent silk.