Major Pierson B. Reading Chapter, NSDAR

08/07/2026

Purple Heart Day is celebrated on August 7th to honor and remember U.S. service members wounded or killed in combat.

Established on August 7, 1782, by General George Washington, Commander-in-Chief of the Continental Army, the award was originally called the Badge of Military Merit. The original badge was a purple, heart-shaped piece of silk bound with a thin edge of silver, with the word "merit" embroidered in silver across the face. Today, it remains the oldest military award still given to U.S. service members.

If you are interested in becoming a member of the Daughters of American Revolution, contact our chapter at [email protected].

08/05/2026

Today we honor the courageous women of the Women Airforce Service Pilots (WASP) whose service during World War II helped shape the future of military aviation.

More than 1,000 civilian women answered the call to serve by flying military aircraft, testing planes, towing targets for live anti-aircraft practice, repairing aircraft, and ferrying aircraft across the country. These pioneering aviators flew over 60 million miles across 77 different types of military aircraft. 38 WASP members lost their lives in service to our country.

08/04/2026

Happy Birthday to the U.S. Coast Guard!

The United States Coast Guard, one of the country's five armed services, is a unique agency of the federal government. It traces its roots to August 4, 1790, when President George Washington signed the Tariff Act requested by Treasury Secretary Alexander Hamilton to build ten cutters to stop smuggling and collect taxes.

Known variously through the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries as the Revenue Marine and the Revenue Cutter Service, they expanded in size and responsibilities as the nation grew. The Coast Guard is one of the oldest organizations of the federal government, and until Congress established the Navy Department in 1798, it served as the nation's only armed force afloat.

The Coast Guard protected the nation throughout its long history and served proudly in the majority of the nation's conflicts. The Coast Guard's national defense responsibilities remain one of its most important functions even today. In times of peace, it operates as part of the Department of Homeland Security, serving as the nation's front-line agency for enforcing the nation's laws at sea, protecting the marine environment and the nation's vast coastline and ports, and saving life. In times of war, or at the direction of the President, the Coast Guard serves as part of the Navy Department.

07/27/2026

Korean War Armistice Day is observed every year on July 27 to mark the 1953 cease-fire that ended active fighting in the Korean War. It honors the service of nearly 1.8 million Americans and remembers those who lost their lives.

While the armistice brought an end to active combat, it is important to remember that North Korea and South Korea remain technically at war, as no formal peace treaty was ever signed.

We honor the sacrifices of all who served during the Korean War and continue to stand in gratitude for their courage and dedication.

May this anniversary remind us of the ongoing hope for peace and unity on the Korean Peninsula.

07/26/2026

The Major Pierson B. Reading Chapter, NSDAR, is thrilled to announce that our updated interpretive sign at the former site of Major Pierson B. Reading's adobe has been installed!

Updating the interpretive sign was a passion project of past chapter Historian, Nancy Leslie. The sign was originally dedicated by our chapter on April 7, 1990, to honor Major Pierson B. Reading during the centennial celebration of the DAR. However, years of intense sunlight and heat damaged many features of the original sign. Nancy reached out to McHale Sign Company in Redding who constructed the original sign. Not only did they remember working on the original sign but were instrumental in helping with the redesign and installation of the new sign so that our goal of educating the public on this historic site could continue for years to come.

When you travel on Balls Ferry Road east of Cottonwood, California, be on the look out for the new road sign directing travelers to three landmarks located off of Adobe Road:

1. The Reading Family Cemetery
2. The Reading Adobe site
3. Reading Island

Our thanks go out to Nancy for her diligence in ensuring this site not be forgotten.

Pictured below is Regent Jennifer Williams (left) and past Historian Nancy Leslie (right) next to the new interpretive sign.

07/17/2026

Today we honor the establishment of our National Cemeteries. National Cemeteries were established during the Civil War. On July 17, 1862, Congress passed legislation authorizing President Abraham Lincoln to create military burial places for fallen soldiers. By the end of 1862, over a dozen national cemeteries were founded. Between 1865 and 1870, the government undertook a massive reburial program to respectfully move the fallen from shallow, hasty battlefield graves to these planned national cemeteries.

There are currently 157 Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) national cemeteries across 44 states and Puerto Rico, alongside 14 national cemeteries managed by the National Park Service and two by the Department of the Army (such as Arlington National Cemetery).

We remember with gratitude. 🇺🇸

If you are interested in becoming a Member of the Major Pierson B. Reading Chapter of the Daughters of American Revolution, please email: [email protected].

07/17/2026

The Battle of St. George Island was the largest battle of the American Revolution fought in Maryland. When the British fleet was first spied off Point Lookout, local men who had been marching to Annapolis to join the march to New York City were quickly recalled. Before they could return, though, ten boats full of British soldiers landed on the island, foraging for water and wood and dumping smallpox-ridden bodies of those who had died during the journey from Virginia. The local Maryland militia, under Captain Rezin Beall, arrived the next day. By lining up in the bushes on the shoreline, they were able to remain hidden until the landing boats were within firing range and so prevented the British from landing a second time. Captain Beall was severely wounded and had to be removed from service. The only casualty was a British mid-shipman on the Roebuck.

In addition to these events on St. George’s Island, Lord Dunmore’s forces also caused trouble up and down the Potomac River while seeking wood and water, burning down at least one plantation, including the house, several outbuildings, and some stacks of wheat. The British were forced back to their ships when Colonel Grayson with his Prince William Volunteers arrived. The fleet then returned to St. George’s Island where they avenged themselves by setting fire to all the houses, fields, and woods thereon. After seeing the strength of the local resistance, Lord Dunmore decided to flee the Chesapeake region.

07/16/2026

This is wonderful news! If you stop by the visitor’s center, be sure to look for the marker placed by District I chapters in honor of our Revolutionary War Patriots for America 250! A picture of the marker is in the comments.

Mark your calendars: The Bidwell Mansion SHP Visitor Center will be reopening on August 7th. Beginning August 7th, the Visitor Center wil be open Fridays and Saturdays from 10 am to 3 pm. Learn about the Reimagine Bidwell Mansion process, check out the displays, and enjoy the gift shop.

07/13/2026

136 years ago today was a significant date in DAR history.

07/13/2026

239 years ago today, Congress adopted the Northwest Ordinance.

Officially titled "An Ordinance for the Government of the Territory of the United States North-West of the River Ohio," the Northwest Ordinance was adopted on July 13, 1787, by the Confederation Congress, the one-house legislature operating under the Articles of Confederation.

The Northwest Ordinance chartered a government for the Northwest Territory, provided a method for admitting new states to the Union from the territory, and listed a bill of rights guaranteed in the territory.

Following the principles outlined by Thomas Jefferson in the Ordinance of 1784, the authors of the Northwest Ordinance spelled out a plan that was subsequently used as the country expanded to the Pacific.

Three principal provisions were ordained in the document:

1. A division of the Northwest Territory into "not less than three nor more than five States."

2. A three-stage method for admitting a new state to the Union: a congressionally appointed governor, secretary, and three judges to rule in the first phase; an elected assembly and one non-voting delegate to Congress to be elected in the second phase when the population of the territory reached "five thousand free male inhabitants of full age"; and a state constitution to be drafted and membership to the Union to be requested in the third phase when the population reached 60,000

3.A bill of rights protecting religious freedom, the right to a writ of habeas corpus, the benefit of trial by jury, and other individual rights; in addition the ordinance encouraged education and forbade slavery.