Our Chapter
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On September 14, 1727, Mercy Otis was born to Mary Allyne and Colonel James Otis of Barnstable, Massachusetts. As she grew, her father, unconventionally for a member of the colonies, allowed his daughter to attend tutoring sessions with her brother as he prepared for Harvard. On November 14, 1754, Mercy Otis married a Plymouth merchant, James Warren who continued to encourage his wife's intellectual pursuits. The Warrens had five sons, James (1757) Winslow (1759), Charles (1762), Henry (1764) and George (1766). Since "Her husband had a distinguished political career" (wiki 1), Mrs. Warren came to know the leaders of the American Revolution personally. Thus, Mrs. Warren was in or near the center of pivotal political discussions which inspired her to begin writing. Pictured here in her early thirties, Mrs. Warren's writings would later include political satires, plays, verse and history. One of the first published women authors in America and best remembered as authoress of the three volume, first history of the American Revolution (1805). Mercy Otis Warren's writing earned her congratulations from contemporaries such as "George Washington and Alexander Hamilton who remarked, 'In the career of dramatic composition at least female genius in the United States has outstripped the male'".
The women of Mercy Warren Chapter, NSDAR, contribute greatly to their community through donating their time and talents towards supplying our friend, Georgia Briggs and her Bear with Me project, Wings of Love, Inc. with hundreds of stuffed animals and handmade bags; annually purchases general supplies for newborns entering the foster care system; adopting a family at Christmas, both through our friend, Giselle of Springfield Children and Family Services. We collect Pop Tabs for Shriners Hospital, make and collect "pink" scarves for the women who participate in the annual march with Rays of Hope and the Baystate Health Breast Network, and support our troops and veterans through distribution flags and marching in the annual Veterans Day Parade in Springfield. For these chapter reasons, and many more, we are proud to be Daughters serving Massachusetts Daughters of the American Revolution (MDAR) through Mercy Warren Chapter, NSDAR, and hope that if you are in search of meaningful community service, or just a friendly and supportive group of women, you will contact us! To learn more about membership click here. |
Chapter History
In 1896, Miss Mary Chapman, historian for the Mercy Warren Chapter, NSDAR, wrote a manuscript of the history of the chapter, and the ancestors of the members, entitled “Revolutionary Ancestry.” Her manuscript stated the following: “On the seventeenth day of December 1891, Mrs. Marshall Calkins was appointed “Regent of the Daughters of the American Revolution for the City of Springfield, Massachusetts,” she being at the time the only member of the society in that place. In the following February, she attended the First Continental Congress in Washington. Returning home, she devoted herself at once to the work of organizing a chapter with such success that a meeting was held in March 1892; and, the nineteenth of April was celebrated with appropriate exercises. In a letter dated April 14,1892, Mrs. A. Howard Clark, at that time Registrar General of the National Society says: “I am much pleased that you are to celebrate the nineteenth of April, and I have no doubt that it will be a great success. This date is also the anniversary of the formal closing of the war, it being finished April 19, 1793. I do not think this fact is generally known. It seems most probable that you will have the first organized chapter in your state. Boston had quite a number of members, but it does not as yet care to form a chapter.”
"The Constitution and By-Laws were signed June 17, 1892, and the organization completed, with all of the officers and a charter membership of twenty-three.”
A full copy of “Revolutionary Ancestry” by Miss Mary Chapman can be downloaded from www.archive.org
To learn about what we do, or if you have questions, please contact the chapter regent
For questions regarding this website, please contact the webmaster.
Women 18 years or older, regardless of race, religion, or ethnic background, who can prove lineal descent from a patriot of the American Revolution, are eligible for membership. For more information about membership visit our membership page.
"The Constitution and By-Laws were signed June 17, 1892, and the organization completed, with all of the officers and a charter membership of twenty-three.”
A full copy of “Revolutionary Ancestry” by Miss Mary Chapman can be downloaded from www.archive.org
To learn about what we do, or if you have questions, please contact the chapter regent
For questions regarding this website, please contact the webmaster.
Women 18 years or older, regardless of race, religion, or ethnic background, who can prove lineal descent from a patriot of the American Revolution, are eligible for membership. For more information about membership visit our membership page.
Our Patriots
Our Activities
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Historic Preservation:
· DAR Forests:
Education
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Patriotism
Contentment Chapter, NSDAR, members support our active-duty military and veterans in a variety of ways.
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Last Updated: June 16, 2023
