Chapter History

The Ruth Brewster Chapter NSDAR was organized on March 1, 1911. At that time, three of the organizing members were already DAR members at large. The other 13 members were all admitted into the DAR on the date the chapter was formed. Miss Maud Westcott, the new Regent, and several of the organizing members were of Mayflower ancestry and belonged to the Mayflower Society. It was decided to name the new chapter “Ruth Brewster” in honor of its Regent’s remote grandmother as she was the last female Brewster in Miss Lipscomb’s Mayflower lineage. At the second meeting in 1911 it was decided that our official chapter colors would be pink and white.

Our chapter’s founder and first Regent, Maud Westcott Lipscomb, was born in 1871 in the District of Columbia to William Corrie Lipscomb and Marry Gallaher. She was of the seventh generation of the direct descendants of Ruth Brewster. Her aunt, Sarah Lipscomb, was one of the founding daughters of the DCDAR. Maud herself was responsible for organizing the first George Washington Birthday Celebration (a tradition that continues within DAR today) and forming the committee to preserve the boundary stones for the District of Columbia. Maintenance of these stones has been a DAR project in DC since 1915. She is most notably remembered for her efforts to honor and preserve the memory of Francis Scott Key as an influential force in the naming of a brand-new bridge across the Potomac River for him. She even testified before congress in January 1930 in support of making the “Star Spangled Banner” the national anthem. Maud served as Regent of the chapter every year from 1911 until her death in 1931, except for 1914-1917 when she served as State Regent. 

The earliest records of the chapter are not complete but according to tradition, the second Tuesday of the month became the regular meeting day for Ruth Brewster chapter almost from the beginning. 

During World War II, the women of Ruth Brewster supported our nation’s efforts by serving meals at the USO, burnishing buddy bags, knitting sweaters for the DAR unit, raising funds to purchase a blood mobile, purchasing war bonds, and adopting a boy on a landing craft in the Pacific. 

In the 1960s, we began sponsoring a very active Junior American Citizen’s Club at Anne Beers Elementary. The school’s 5th grade teacher, Marca Pekar, eventually joined our chapter and served as our Regent from 1976-1978. 

In 1976, the bicentennial year of our nation’s birth, our chapter came up with a unique way to support NSDAR’s 1976/77 theme “helping to preserve an ancient landmark.” In July of that year, 25 Ruth Brewster members and friends traveled to Connecticut to place a bronze marker on the Ruth Brewster grave site in the Old Norwichtown Cemetery. 

In the early 1980s, the chapter began serving lunches to veteran patients from the Washington area.  This veteran’s luncheon is a tradition that continued until COVID and one we hope to resume this year. 

In the new millennium, the chapter moved to Saturday meetings to attract members and encourage involvement. We’ve since adjusted tradition to alternate Tuesday and Saturday meetings to accommodate our diverse membership. As an inter generational chapter, Ruth Brewster members continue to be committed to promoting the core values of patriotism, historic preservation, and education into our 111th year.