Ellen Hardin Walworth was an American author, lawyer, and activist who was a passionate advocate for the importance of studying history and historic preservation. Walworth was one of the founders of the Daughters of the American Revolution and was the organization's first secretary general. She was the first editor of the DAR's official magazine, American Monthly Magazine. In 1893, during a speech at the World's Columbian Exposition, Walworth was one of the first people to propose the establishment of the United States National Archives. Walworth was one of the first women in New York State to hold a position on a local board of education, a role that was frequently used to bolster the call for women's suffrage.

The National Society Daughters of the American Revolution is a lineage-based membership service organization for women who are directly descended from a person involved in supporting the American Revolution. A non-profit group, the organization promotes education and patriotism. Its membership is limited to direct lineal descendants of soldiers or others of the American Revolution era who aided the revolution and its subsequent war. Applicants must be at least 18 years of age and have a birth certificate indicating that their gender is female. DAR has over 190,000 current members in the United States and other countries. The organization's motto is "God, Home, and Country".