The SAR MAGAZINE is the official quarterly publication of the National Society of the Sons of the American Revolution published quarterly.
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FALL 2014 33 Huguenot societies. In addition to his many years of service to the SAR, he is active in the Lincoln Toastmasters Club and the Astronomy Society. He is also a 25-year member of the First Plymouth Congregational Church choir, which performs around the world. NEVADA SOCIETY The Northern Chapter commemorated the 238th anniversary of the adoption of the Declaration of Independence July 4 with its annual bell ringing ceremony at the Nevada State Museum in Carson City. This ceremony evolved from the Congressionally recognized national event of "Ringing in Our Freedom," which began in 1963, when patriotic Americans were encouraged to ring all the states' replica Liberty Bells across America at 2 p.m. EDT, the precise time of the tolling of the Philadelphia Liberty Bell on July 4. The coordinator for this year's ceremony was again David Hess, the Northern Chapter president. Hess frst brought this event to the NVSSAR when he became a member in 2010. The event was so well received by the Northern Chapter membership that it has become an annual ceremony. This year, the Northern Chapter's Fifes and Drums of Nevada (F&DN;) debut appearance was the prequel to the 11 a.m. (PST) tolling of the bell. The F&DN; was founded in 2013 by Hess, and includes members Marcia Baldwin of the Washoe Zephyr Chapter, Nevada Society of the NSDAR, and Northern Chapter Compatriots Roger Linscott, Brian Worcester and retired U.S. Army Col. Ed Carson. The F&DN; performed "Yankee Doodle" and "The Old 1812 Quickstep" for the gathering, and then recited the Declaration of Independence. Afterward, attendees—both children and adults—were invited to ring the replica Liberty Bell. Each participant called out his or her state— or their ancestor's state in the Revolution—each time the lanyard was pulled. Several dignitaries attended, including John Riggs, commander of the Gen. William P. Carlin Camp (Camp 25), Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War, and retired U.S. Army Lt. Col. Niklas Putnam, NVSSAR compatriot and also governor of the Nevada Society, Founders and Patriots of America. Several other societies also were represented, including members from the Society of the Cincinnati; the Nevada Society, NSDAR; the American Legion; the Mayflower Society; and the Nevada Celtic Society. NEW HAMPSHIRE SOCIETY NHSSAR members participated in the rededication of the Maj. Gen. John Stark gravesite this fall, below. Renovation and rehabilitation of the gravesite were made possible by donations from the NHSSAR and from the George Washington Endowment Fund. The gravesite is on a portion of Gen. Stark's farm that is now a municipal park in Manchester. New Hampshire's state motto, "Live Free or Die," was taken from Stark's writings. NEW JERSEY SOCIETY A 2-ton bog iron rock with an embedded bronze plaque was dedicated by the Col. Richard Somers Chapter to the heroes from the 3rd Battalion, Gloucester County Militia (commanded by the chapter's namesake), on May 31 in Chestnut Neck Memorial Park. Chestnut Neck is the site of the only Revolutionary War battle in Atlantic County, which was carved from Gloucester County in 1837, and the monument is the county's first. On Oct. 6, 1778, 1,700 British troops led by Capts. Henry Collins and Patrick Ferguson entered Great Bay from the Atlantic and sailed into the mouth of the Mullica River to destroy "that nest of rebel pirates." The town was one of the most successful privateering centers on the East Coast. Every home in town was burned, but privateers returned and continued to attack British shipping. This new monument is a sister to one dedicated to the local privateers by the chapter in 1988. Bog iron was chosen for both, as it was in the ground these brave men fought for and was used to make cannonballs and other munitions. NJSSAR President Rev. Norman Goos led the program, which included the American Legion Post 28 Honor Guard posting the colors and in procession, the VFW Post 9462 Honor Guard, the Military Order of the Purple Heart, the Marine Corps League and Boy Scout Troop 254. Following an invocation, a local choral group sang two stanzas of our national anthem. After the speakers, the Gen. Lafayette Chapter, NSDAR, presented a wreath at the monument. A moment of silence was followed by a 21-gun salute and "Taps." An estimated 200 people attended the dedication. From left, retired U.S. Army Col. Ed Carson; Brian Worcester; Marcia Baldwin, Nevada Society, NSDAR; David Hess; and Roger Linscott.