When choosing a qualifying ancestor for a lineage society application, Mayflower ancestors are a popular choice. They’re well known… and they qualify for multiple societies. Mayflower ancestors can be used to apply not only for the General Society of Mayflower Descendants but also, depending on their role, the National Society of the Colonial Dames of America, the Society of Colonial Wars, and the Colonial Dames of America.
The Mayflower Society offers a method to check to see what information has already been submitted to their society for a specific family line, for a fee. This process is called “Mayflower Lineage Match.” Submitting a Lineage Match request is a key first step if you’re intending to do a Mayflower Society application. If you’re lucky, much of the line is already on file, saving you time and money.
What about if you’re intending to do applications for multiple societies? It will depend on the combination of societies. The Society of Colonial Wars accepts recent Mayflower Society applications as “proof,” so you can submit your Mayflower application based off lineage match and use that as a basis for a Warriors application. It gets more complicated if you’re a candidate for either Colonial Dames society. Neither NSCDA nor CDA accepts Mayflower applications. If you intend to use a Mayflower ancestor to join the Dames, you’ll need to plan to document the line in full.
In short, Lineage Match may still be helpful if you’re seeking to join multiple societies. However, it’s important to pay attention to the society and the complexity of the line. Sometimes, it may make more sense to just go ahead and start from scratch.