National Society Colonial Dames XVII Century
{{short description|Lineage and heraldry society}}
{{Infobox organization
| name = National Society Colonial Dames XVII Century
| full_name = Colonial Dames 17th Century
| image = Brigadier General George P. Scriven House.jpg
| logo = National_Society_Colonial_Dames_XVII_Century_logo.png
| caption = The Brigadier General George P. Scriven House, the organization's headquarters in Washington, D.C.
| abbreviation =
| leader_title = President General
| leader_name = Yvonne Hiteshue
| founded_date = July 15, 1915
| founding_location = San Francisco, California
| type = Non-profit, lineage society, heraldry society
| founder = Mary Florence Taney
| focus = Historic preservation, education, patriotism
| headquarters = Brigadier General George P. Scriven House
1300 New Hampshire Avenue, Washington, D.C., U.S.
| publication =
| affiliations =
| homepage = {{URL|https://colonialdames17c.org/}}
}}
The National Society Colonial Dames XVII Century, also referenced as National Society Colonial Dames 17th Century, is an American lineage-based heraldry society and non-profit service organization for women who are directly descended from American colonists who lived in the Thirteen Colonies prior to 1701.
Established in 1915, the organization holds one of the largest collections of coats of arms in the United States. The National Society Colonial Dames XVII Century has 45 active state societies in the United States and one active international society in Canada.
History
File:Marker for Princess Anne Port.jpg, at current College Landing Archeological Site, placed by the organization along with the Virginia Historical Society and the City of Williamsburg]]
File:OldMartinCountyFlaCourthouse 006.JPG in Stuart, Florida]]
The National Society Colonial Dames XVII Century was founded by Mary Florence Taney of Kentucky during the meeting of the International Genealogical Congress at the Panama–Pacific International Exposition in San Francisco, California.{{cite web |url= https://www.colonialdames17c.org/i4a/pages/index.cfm?pageid=3292|title= Background to the Society|author= |website= The National Society Colonial Dames XVII Century|access-date= August 27, 2023}} It was established on July 15, 1915, as a non-profit organization in Washington, D.C.{{cite web |url= https://www.colonialdames17c.org/i4a/pages/index.cfm?pageid=1|title= Yvonne Hiteshue 2023 – 2025 President General|last= Hiteshue |first= Yvonne |website= The National Society Colonial Dames XVII Century|access-date= August 27, 2023}}
Taney, along with Alice Hardeman Dulaney of New York, Anna Taylor Hodge of Kentucky, Georgena Hodge Bailey of Kentucky, Florence May Washington of Kentucky, and Grace Marie Cheever of Ohio, formed the organization as a lineage society.{{cite web |url= https://axaem.archives.ncdcr.gov/findingaids/ORG_7009_Colonial_Dames_XVII_Ce_.html|title= Colonial Dames XVII Century, Governor Philip Ludwell Chapter Records|author= |website= Western Regional Archives|publisher= State Archives of North Carolina|access-date= August 27, 2023}}
The headquarters was established in the 1884 Victorian home of Brigadier General George P. Scriven, the Brigadier General George P. Scriven House, in Dupont Circle located at 1300 New Hampshire Avenue, which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.{{cite web |url= https://www.nps.gov/articles/brigadier-general-george-p-scriven-house.htm|title= Brigadier General George P. Scriven House|author= |website= National Park Service|publisher= U.S. Department of the Interior|access-date= August 27, 2023}}{{cite web |url= https://historicsites.dcpreservation.org/items/show/724|title= George P. Scriven House|author= |date= February 28, 2013|website= DC Historic Sites|publisher= DC Preservation League|access-date= August 27, 2023}} The National Society Colonial Dames XVII Century purchased the home from the Veterans of Foreign Wars on May 15, 1957, for their headquarters, meeting place, library, and repository.
The organization was founded for women, at least 18 years of age, who are lineal descendants of an ancestor who lived and served prior to 1701 in one of the Thirteen American Colonies: the Province of Massachusetts Bay, the Province of Georgia, the Province of New Hampshire, the Connecticut Colony, the Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations, the Province of Pennsylvania, the Province of New Jersey, the Province of New York, the Delaware Colony, the Colony of Virginia, the Province of Maryland, the Province of North Carolina, and the Province of South Carolina.
The National Society Colonial Dames XVII Century states on their official website that their members are "devoted to preserving the memory of those that settled in the United States of America prior to 1701." The organization preserves historic sites and records, promotes heraldry and coats of arms of colonial families and organizations, and supports education at local, state, and the national level.
The organization sponsors and places historical markers throughout the United States.{{cite web |url= https://www.hmdb.org/results.asp?Search=Series&SeriesID=525|title= The Colonial Dames XVII Century, National Society Historical Markers |author= |date= |website= Historical Marker Database|publisher= Historical Marker Database|access-date= August 27, 2023}}
Organization and structure
The National Society Colonial Dames XVII Century has over 11,000 members throughout forty-five state societies in the United States and one international society based in Canada.{{cite journal |url= https://digitalheritage.arkansas.gov/neara-finding-aids/71/|title= National Society Colonial Dames XVII Century records, 1915–1983|author= |journal= Neara Finding Aids|date= 31 December 1983|publisher= Arkansas State Archives|access-date= August 27, 2023}} Each of the societies are made up of individual chapters.
The organization is led by the president general, who is elected for a two-year long term by members in attendance of the organization's annual conference. The national executive board, which is headed by the president general, is composed of thirteen elected members.
Notable members
- Ann Turner Dillon, American clubwoman and lineage society leader
- Marion Moncure Duncan, American businesswoman and lineage society leader
- Edith Scott Magna, American lineage society leader
- Mary Florence Taney, lineage society leader
- Almyra Maynard Watson, American military nurse
- Lynn Forney Young, American civic leader and lineage society leader
References
{{Reflist}}
See also
{{Woman's club movement}}
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:National Society Colonial Dames XVII Century}}
Category:1915 establishments in Washington, D.C.
Category:Charities based in Washington, D.C.
Category:Clubs and societies in Washington, D.C.
Category:History of women in the United States
Category:National Society Colonial Dames XVII Century
Category:Nonpartisan organizations in the United States
Category:Organizations established in 1915