Society of Mayflower Descendants in Ohio

Just when I thought I was busy enough, I was asked to become the Historian for the Society of Mayflower Descendants in Ohio. Our last Historian passed away after a brief illness in July 2007 and the Assistant Historian decided that my computer skills would be a great addition to this position. It is fun, but does take a lot of time.

My task is to assist prospective members to complete their applications that get sent to the Historian General in Plymouth for approval (and current members who want to submit supplemental applications). This means studying the documentation they have provided to make sure it is credible and that each generation is well linked to the previous ones. I have to type up the final applications (which I'm generally doing on my lunch break at work) then get the whole application packaged for submission.

If you are interested in becoming a member (in Ohio or any other state), you can go to the main website for the Society of Mayflower Descendants and fill out the on-line submission form. The librarian will do a preliminary review of your line, let you know if it looks acceptable and then route you to your state society for the rest of the process.

For Ohio, you can also start with our preliminary application forms and send them to the Assistant Historian for the initial review. The steps to the process are:

Submit a preliminary application and review form to the Assistant Historian;
Preliminary acceptance of the application by the Ohio Board of Assistants (5 meetings each year);
Preparation of complete application package and submission to me for review and final assembly (this can occur either after Board acceptance or during the time between meetings);
Submission to the Historian General for approval (must wait for Ohio approval);
Final election to membership by the Ohio Board of Assistants.

I have tweaked the forms that have been used in Ohio for the last several years to make them easier to work with on the computer.

Preliminary applications - Complete both the forms below for your preliminary contact. Both forms must be sent to the Assistant Historian at the address on the form. You must submit these two forms before you submit a worksheet with your documentation.

Preliminary application
Preliminary review form

These are both fill-in pdf forms that you can save on your computer. You will need Adobe Acrobat Reader version 8 or better to view and complete these forms. If you need the newest version, here is a link to the download page on the Adobe website.

pdf forms for hand completion	Word forms for computer completion
Once you have submitted your preliminary application, you can start on your worksheet and collection all your documentation. You will be provided with one copy of a worksheet with the 1st 5 or so generations filled in with full documentation by the Assistant Historian. He will provide you with instructions on sending your completed packet to me once you have it ready. I should have a fill in pdf worksheet for you shortly.
Application worksheet	Application worksheet
Children under 18 can become Junior members if sponsored by any current member. The form includes instructions on where to send it.
Junior application	Junior application

Here are a couple of other documents to aid in your search for documentation:

Questions? Feel free to contact me at my new email address for this job - OHMayflowerHistorian at gmail dot com. Check out our new website at www.ohiomayflower.org.

Edited 11/5/2007