A DAR Application for My Ancestor Nathaniel Wells

One of the pleasures of genealogy is discovering that a document collected years ago contains information that is far more relevant than I originally realized. That was the case when I recently revisited a photocopy of a 1923 application for membership in the Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR).

The application was submitted by Imelda May Jessee of Wallingford, Vermont, and approved in January 1924. At first glance, it appeared to be simply another Wells family document. Upon closer examination, however, I realized that the Revolutionary War patriot named in the application, Nathaniel Wells, is also my ancestor.

Nathaniel Wells and his wife, Polly (Mary) Thurston Wells, are my 5th great-grandparents.

A Shared Lineage

The DAR application traces Imelda May Jessee’s descent from Nathaniel Wells through the following line:

1. Imelda May Jessee
2. Frances E. Clapp (1859–1910)
3. Sarah Wells (1825–1910)
4. Joseph Wells (1790–1845)
5. Thurston Wells (1766–1818)
6. Nathaniel Wells (about 1730–1804)

The application also identifies the spouses in each generation:

• Frances E. Clapp married Fred Robinson.
• Sarah Wells married George Clapp.
• Joseph Wells married Harriet Blake.
• Thurston Wells married Irene Badger.
• Nathaniel Wells married Polly (Mary) Thurston.

While the lineage was prepared to establish Imelda’s eligibility for DAR membership, it also provides information about my own Wells ancestry. Discovering a lineage society application that documents one of my direct ancestral lines is always exciting, particularly when it was created more than a century ago.

Nathaniel Wells: Revolutionary War Soldier

The primary purpose of the application was to prove Revolutionary War service. According to the documentation submitted with the application, Nathaniel Wells served as a private during the American Revolution.

The application cites Connecticut Men in the Revolution and states that Nathaniel Wells:

• Enlisted on 6 May 1775
• Served as a Private
• Was assigned to Captain James Chapman’s Company
• Served in the regiment commanded by Colonel Samuel Holden Parsons
• Was discharged on 17 December 1776

The accompanying service statement explains that Parsons’ regiment was raised during the first call for troops in the spring of 1775. Recruits came from New London, Hartford, and Middlesex Counties in Connecticut.

The regiment participated in the defense of the Boston area during the early months of the war. Nathaniel and his fellow soldiers served at Roxbury as part of General Joseph Spencer’s Brigade, helping maintain the siege that ultimately forced the British evacuation of Boston in March 1776.

Although the service summary is brief, it places Nathaniel among the ordinary soldiers whose service helped secure American independence.

The Value of Earlier DAR Applications

One detail that caught my attention was the reference to an earlier DAR application, National Number 55401. The application was also verified against another previously approved DAR membership.

Those references remind us that lineage society applications are often interconnected. Earlier applications may contain supporting records, family Bible entries, correspondence, or additional evidence that was not copied into later applications. They can serve as valuable research leads for future investigation.

Of course, like any compiled genealogy, information from early DAR applications should be verified against original records whenever possible. Standards of documentation have changed considerably since the 1920s. Nevertheless, these applications frequently preserve clues that might otherwise be lost.

Why I’m Keeping This Record

This DAR application is more than a lineage chart. It connects a twentieth-century descendant to a Revolutionary War soldier and preserves family relationships spanning nearly two hundred years.

For me, it has an added significance. The application was prepared by another descendant of Nathaniel Wells, but it also documents my own ancestry. Seeing Nathaniel Wells and Polly (Mary) Thurston identified as the parents of Thurston Wells provides another piece of evidence connecting generations of the Wells family.

Sometimes the most interesting discoveries are not new records at all. They are records that have been sitting in our files for years, waiting for us to look at them again with fresh eyes.

Have you ever rediscovered a document in your files and realized it contained information about one of your own direct ancestors?