Older Sons of the American Revolution applications are available on Ancestry as part of the “U.S., Sons of the American Revolution Membership Applications, 1889-1970″ collection. It can be tempting to take these applications as evidence of an accurate lineage and even to try to use them as the basis of future SAR applications. After, they’ve already been reviewed by the society once.
Don’t. Lineage society standards for reviewing an application have changed dramatically over the decades. While some applications were well cited, even decades ago, many had no sources or list “family records” (without copies or specifics) as evidence. SAR currently only accepts applications verified after 2012 without additional review.
Instead, treat these applications as hints. Use them to locate additional records or to learn where to start looking for an ancestor’s birth, death, or marriage. Consider them the equivalents of family trees: they will vary in quality, and some will be useful, but all should not be considered reliable.