[Congressional Record Volume 142, Number 64 (Thursday, May 9, 1996)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E739]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

[[Page E739]]



           SONS OF THE REVOLUTION OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA

                                 ______


                        HON. CARLOS J. MOORHEAD

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                         Wednesday, May 8, 1996

  Mr. MOORHEAD. Mr. Speaker, it is an honor for me to bring to the 
attention of my colleagues in the U.S. House of Representatives the 
103d birthday of the Sons of the Revolution in the State of California, 
founded in my home State in May 1893.
  The Sons of the Revolution was first organized in New York on 
December 18, 1875, primarily by members of the Society of Cincinnati, 
the oldest and most revered Revolutionary War group.
  The Sons of the Revolution in the State of California was formed on 
the 8th day of May 1893 and incorporated in the county of Los Angeles 4 
days later by members of the New York Society then living in 
California.
  The membership of the Sons of the Revolution is composed solely of 
the posterity of those individuals who served in the Revolutionary War 
in a number of vital capacities. In order to be eligible for membership 
in the history-making Sons of the Revolution, an individual must have 
had a family member who participated in the Revolutionary Army, 
Marines, or Navy; served the Continental Congress or the Congresses of 
any of the Thirteen Colonies that supported the Revolutionary War 
effort.
  As one might expect, Mr. Speaker, the membership rolls of the Sons of 
the Revolution make for fascinating and famous reading.
  Through their various patriotic, historical, and educational 
activities, this storied organization has and continues to encourage 
and inspire the people of California and the United States. It 
continues to honor the memory of those brave individuals who pledged 
their lives, fortunes, and sacred honor so that all Americans could 
enjoy the freedoms and liberties established more than 200 years ago 
under our Constitution and enjoyed by all today.
  To a considerable extent, Mr. Speaker, this inspiration and education 
has been accomplished through the Sons of the Revolution Library, which 
has operated in my hometown of Glendale for the past 103 years. The 
library has received no financial support from any governmental 
agencies. It has been kept open, free-of-charge, to the public in 
keeping with the purposes of the society to perpetuate the memory of 
the brave men who fought in the Revolutionary War.
  The library with a collection of more than 35,000 volumes, is well-
known as one of the largest genealogical and historical collections of 
its type in California.
  The library is not only blessed with a magnificent collection of 
books and manuscripts, but also houses some exceptionally rare 
artifacts. These include George Washington's leopard skin saddle pad, 
one of two remaining silk flags reviewed by George Washington, early 
U.S. Navy boarding swords and leather fire buckets from Adm. David G. 
Farragut's flagship, U.S.S. Hartford, just to name a few.
  Not only does the library serve as a valuable research tool, it also 
serves as a meeting place for the Daughters of the American Revolution, 
the California Society of the War of 1812, the Aztec Club of 1847, the 
Military Order of the Loyal Legion of the United States, the Military 
Order of Foreign Wars of the United States, the Army and Navy Union of 
the United States, U.S. Submarine Veterans, Society of Colonial Wars in 
the State of California.
  Mr. Speaker, I am pleased and honored to recognize and pay tribute to 
the Sons of the Revolution in the State of California on their 103d 
birthday. We only have to travel a short way from our borders to 
realize how richly blessed we are as a people and a nation. We have 
liberties and opportunities few in history have enjoyed. For this 
untold bounty, we owe much to the Sons of the Revolution and their 
families.

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