Isabel and the DAR

Family lore has stated that my wife's great aunt, Isabel Cooper, was a member of the DAR. It is also rumored that her husband was a member of the Sons of Cincinnatus. Following the research tips shown in Family Tree Magazine, I decided to try and verify this story.

I started by generating a list of all ancestors from the Cooper side of the family who were living in America at the time of the American Revolution. There were two people listed - John Obadiah Cooper (1755-1838) and Solomon Hawes (1752-1820).

My research notes show that Cooper fought in the American Revolution. Since I have no sources to verify the information, I have to assume this information came from oral history passed down the Cooper line.

I checked the DAR's Patriot database and came up empty. Searching for Cooper's son John Obadiah Cooper and his wife Elizabeth Hawes also returned nothing. Perhaps the DAR has not finished putting all of the member records online. Perhaps the information I was given was incorrect.

The next step: check with other family members to see what documents they may have to either prove or disprove this story.