MEMBERSHIP

Any person living in Delaware who can document his or her descent from any one or more of the twenty nine Mayflower Pilgrims who left descendants is invited to join the Society of Mayflower Descendants in the State of Delaware. The following is a listing of the twenty six men and three woman who were the Mayflower passengers from whom descent has been proven

If you believe that you may have a Mayflower ancestor, which over twenty million living persons do, we encourage you to try to find that ancestor. Perhaps family tradition tells of an ancestor who was aboard the Mayflower. Perhaps a relative is already a member of a state Mayflower society somewhere. You may know of a branch of your family that dates back to colonial New England. If so, chances are good that one of your family lines will lead back to seventeenth century Plymouth, Massachusetts and one or more Mayflower passenger..

Researching Your Mayflower Ancestor

The search can be both fun and rewarding. Thanks to our age of computers and information technology, much of the research can be done on line. See the “Genealogy” page of this website for links to some of the more popular genealogy websites, which can be a good place to start. Often persons you don't know are cousins who have already done much of the research for you and have it posted on one of those sites. To begin the process, click on this simplified Lineage Form, download it, and fill in the names of your forebearers from your Mayflower ancestor down to you. If you need advice at this point, email this form to the Delaware Mayflower Historian who will review it and be in touch with you to answer any questions you may have.

Your Preliminary Application

Click on the Preliminary Application, Worksheet, and Instructions and download them. You will see from the worksheet that you will need to provide not only dates and places for your ancestor's births, marriages and deaths, but also documentation of these events. Recent generations are generally easily documented by obtaining copies of birth, marriage and death certificates from state or county vital statistics clerks. Older records can often be obtained from historical societies, state or local archives, and churches. The oldest records are often the easiest, because the General Society of Mayflower Descendants in Plymouth has published books containing the genealogies of most of the twenty nine Pilgrims who left descendants, in the “Five Generations Project”, a set of published official genealogies that record the first five generations of descendants of each of these pilgrims.

When the Preliminary Application and Worksheet are completed, follow the included instructions and submit them to the Delaware Society Historian along with the application fee. The Historian will review them and will contact you regarding any clarifications or further documentation that may be required. Then the Historian will prepare the official application using your preliminary application and worksheet, will return them to you for your review and signature, and will forward them to the General Society Historian for final review and approval.

Classifications of Membership

The Society has three types of memberships: Regular, Junior and Life.

Regular Members are those persons eighteen years of age or older who have submitted and had approved by the Historian General in Plymouth their lineage application for membership, and have paid the applicable dues and fees to the Delaware Society.

Junior Members are those persons who have not yet attained their eighteenth birthday and who have been sponsored by a blood member of their family who is currently a member of the Delaware Society. Junior members may retain their memberships until age twenty-five, but do not become Regular Members without first having their own application for membership approved by the Historian General in Plymouth and paying the applicable dues and fees to the Delaware Society.

Life Members are those persons who have become members and who pay the applicable life membership fee to the Delaware Society.