Were your ancestors among the original settlers in your state? Is there a state version of the DAR/SAR there? Texas has both a Sons and Daughters of Texas, and The Texas State Genealogical Society has a great Heritage Certificate program.
I was able to get my husband a Texas First Families Certificate! You don't have to be a direct descendant (like my proud husband), you can be a "collateral" descendant, meaning you had an aunt or an uncle or sibling of an ancestor that got here before February 19, 1846 when Texas became part of the United States. And now they are accepting DNA as proof of descendancy!
Here is a list from their website (https://www.txsgs.org/about/):
Texas First Families Certificate: Individuals who are direct or collateral descendants of settlers who resided in Texas prior to 19 February 1846 are eligible.
Gone to Texas Pioneer Certificate: Individual direct descendants of settlers that resided in Texas prior to 1886 may apply.
West Texas Pioneer Certificate: Individual direct descendants of settlers that resided in West Texas prior to 1901 may apply.
Greer County Texas Pioneer Certificate: Applicant must prove direct or collateral descent from a settler in Greer County between 1860-1907. This county included parts of Texas and Oklahoma.
Descendants of Texas Rangers Certificate: An applicant must be directly or collaterally descended from someone who served as a Texas Ranger and who is deceased. A collateral ancestor is a brother or sister of the Texas Ranger.
This week I became acquainted with a different heritage society, the Alamo Defenders Descendants Association. To join here, you must be a direct or collateral descendant of someone who was at the Alamo between February 23 and March 6, 1836, including scouts, couriers and noncombatant survivors. From their website, "Proofs for eligibility are census records, wills, deeds, old letters, pension records, church records, tombstones, etc. Proof must be certified copies of birth, marriage, or death certificates. Include County volume and page number when using courthouse documents such as wills. The ADDA does not accept newspaper articles, family histories or information published in books of any kind." They are not currently accepting DNA as proof of descendancy. Here is their website for more info: https://alamodescendants.org/Default
If you've got that hard to shop for relative, a Heritage Society Membership may be a great gift idea for you! Let me know if I can help!
Hope your August is going smoothly!
Regards,
Leslie Ryan
“World peace must develop from inner peace. Peace is not just mere absence of violence. Peace is, I think, the manifestation of human compassion.” ― Dalai Lama XIV
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