By Compatriot George Stewart, Chapter Historian
The Burnet House, Cincinnati, OH
The Ohio Society, Sons of the American Revolution was organized April 11, 1889 in the office of Governor Joseph B. Foraker, who became a charter member. The meeting at the Capitol in Columbus, Ohio was a preliminary meeting, attended by a few residents of the state. Eleven days later, at a second meeting, Reverend W. R Parsons from Worthington, Ohio was elected the first President of the Ohio Society. At a meeting held on June 4, 1889 at the State House in Columbus, a Constitution and By-Laws were adopted. The annual dues were fixed at $1.00 and life membership at $10.00.
The National Congress at Louisville on April 30, 1890 began the work of recruiting membership for creating local chapters for the Society in Ohio. The first meeting in Cincinnati was held on May 28, 1890 at the Burnet House with an excellent attendance. The meeting was described as enthusiastic and energetic as efforts began to secure a large membership for the start of a Cincinnati Chapter. However, the Ohio SAR met with an unexpected obstacle in a public misapprehension of the character of the Society. Some of the German newspapers in Cincinnati conceived the opinion that German citizens were excluded from membership because they were Germans. It was found necessary to make explanations though the press. The Society received the powerful aid of General H. V. Boynton, whose editorials and explanations in the The Cincinnati Commercial-Gazette had awakened fresh interest in the Ohio Society Sons of the American Revolution.
