This Day in Black History: Dec. 28, 1977
On Dec. 28, 1977 Karen Farmer became the first-known Black member of the Daughters of the American Revolution, a lineage-based membership organization.
By Danielle Wright
December 28, 2011 / 7:00 AM
<p>Karen Farmer became the first known Black member of the <a target="_blank" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daughters_of_the_American_Revolution">Daughters of the American Revolution</a>, a lineage-based membership organization for women who can prove that they are a bloodline descent from an ancestor who aided in achieving the United States? independence. Farmer, a then-26-year-old Detroit real estate agent, traced her family?s roots back to the 1700s. According to Farmer, when researching her family history, she discovered an ancestor dating back to 1757 named William Hood, who was a soldier in the <a href="http://www.history.army.mil/books/RevWar/ContArmy/CA-fm.htm" target="_blank">Continental Army</a> of the <a href="http://www.pbs.org/ktca/liberty/" target="_blank">American Revolution</a>. She was the first African-American to be eligible to join the organization.</p>
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<p><i>(Photo: Courtesy of DAR.org)<br>
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