Welcome and thank you for your interest
in the General George Washington Society!
We are an affinity association of the Sons of the Revolution℠ in the State of New York, Inc. open to everyone who wishes to celebrate the service of the men who fought to achieve American Independence.
We are supporters of Fraunces Tavern® Museum and its mission to preserve and interpret the history of the Revolutionary War era.
And we are patriotic professionals who enjoy socializing together at Fraunces Tavern®.
Washington's Farewell to his Officers by G.H. Buck, 1893. Collection of Fraunces Tavern Museum. Click image to enlarge.
REMEMBERING AMERICA’S FIRST PATRIOTS℠
Sons of the Revolution℠ in the State of New York
Riding a wave of patriotism that swelled around America’s centennial celebrations, the Sons of the Revolution in the State of New York was instituted in 1876 by the grandsons and great-grandsons of the Patriots who achieved American Independence to remember and honor their service.
The Sons was founded with the express purpose of inclusivity. While still being selective in choosing which gentlemen to admit, we welcomed all male descendants of everyone who fought for our liberty—descendants of common soldiers as well as commissioned officers, descendants of Patriots who served in the thirteen state militias as well as in the Continental Army.
Our familial relationship with America’s founding is what makes being a Son so special. We see the Conflict through our ancestors’ eyes, keeping before our minds the memory of their services, the times in which they lived, and of the principles for which they contended.
General George Washington Society℠
Our General George Washington Society emulates this special relationship by having its members “adopt” a Revolutionary War soldier, perhaps one “orphaned” without offspring. Thus, our affinity association completes the primary duty of the Sons by memorializing all Patriots who served, and not just those with present-day progeny. And it perfects the Sons’ founding purpose of inclusivity by welcoming all ladies and gentlemen regardless of lineage.
General Washington had no children so can never be remembered by the Sons as one of our ancestors. There are thousands of patriots of the Revolution just like him, many of whom sacrificed their lives on the battlefield, whose individual service will remain forgotten without the addition of the General George Washington Society to adopt and honor them.
Know all men by these presents that the General George Washington Society has been instituted to:
perpetuate the memory of the men who, in military, naval or civil service, by their acts or counsel, achieved American Independence;
promote public awareness of and support for Fraunces Tavern Museum;
inculcate in the community in general, sentiments of Nationality and respect for the principles for which the patriots of the Revolution contended;
inspire among its members the patriotic spirit of the men who achieved American Independence; and
promote social intercourse and the feeling of fellowship among its members.
ADOPT A SOLDIER
Applicants for the General George Washington Society will be required to:
adopt a Revolutionary War soldier;
document the soldier’s service and its importance to the Cause;
be proposed and seconded by existing GGW Society or SRNY members;
be recommended by a vote of the GGW Society Committee of the SRNY;
be approved by the Board of Managers of the SRNY; and
pay a $150 initiation fee and $150 annual dues.
If you are interested in joining as one of our founding members, please fill out our interest form and we will be in touch with you.
FRAUNCES TAVERN®
Celebrating America’s Victory in the Revolutionary War
On November 25, 1783, at the close of the Revolutionary War, British troops who had occupied Manhattan for seven long years boarded their transport ships and sailed east to London—what we now remember as Evacuation Day.
That evening, New York Governor George Clinton hosted a victory celebration at Fraunces Tavern. General Washington led the festivities with thirteen toasts, drinking to:
The United States of America
His most Christian Majesty, Louis XVI
The United Netherlands
The King of Sweden
The Continental Army
The Fleets and Armies of France, which have served in America
The Memory of those Heroes who have fallen for our Freedom
May our Country be grateful to her military children
May Justice support what Courage has gained
The Vindicators of the Rights of Mankind in every Quarter of the Globe
May America be an Asylum to the persecuted of the Earth
May a close Union of the States guard the Temple they have erected to Liberty
May the Remembrance of this Day be a Lesson to Princes
Each year the Sons of the Revolution in the State of New York reenact the Evacuation Day banquet, with honored attendees presenting each of the original thirteen toasts. All members of the GGW Society are encouraged to join us at Fraunces Tavern in our annual Evacuation Day commemoration.
Keeping Our Republic
Nine days later on December 4, 1783, General Washington invited the officers of the Continental Army to join him in the Long Room of Fraunces Tavern to inform them that he would be resigning his commission and to bid them farewell. The best-known account of this emotional parting comes from the Memoir of Colonel Benjamin Tallmadge, written in 1830 and now in the collection of Fraunces Tavern Museum.
It is rare that a victorious military commander cedes power back to civilian authorities. Reportedly, when King George III learned of General Washington’s intent to retire to Mount Vernon and resume his prior life as a gentleman farmer, he exclaimed: "If he does that, he will be the greatest man in the world!"
Each year Fraunces Tavern Museum sponsors a reenactment of General Washington’s farewell to his officers. GGW Society members are encouraged to deepen their appreciation of Fraunces Tavern’s history by attending this commemoration as well.
Sons of the Revolution℠ in the State of New York, Inc. purchased the historic Fraunces Tavern in 1904 and, after a restoration, opened our museum above our restaurant in 1907. Learn more about Fraunces Tavern® Museum and the history of Fraunces Tavern® and its namesake Samuel Fraunces® .