As the drama of the American Revolution drew to a close, the officers of the Continental Army sought to memorialize their roles in this historic conflict. Many had already begun to reflect on the legacy they would leave to future generations. Thomas Jefferson’s diary entry of March 16, 1788, related how, in 1776, General Henry Knox “said he should wish for some ribbon to wear in his hat or in his button hole, to be transmitted to his descendants as a badge and a proof that he had fought in defence of their liberties. He spoke of it in such precise terms as shewed that he had revolved it in his mind before”. Other officers shared General Knox’s wish for recognition, and many, cognizant of the dire financial straits of many brother officers, also desired to maintain the camaraderie of their military days. Captain Christopher Richmond noted that “it was unhappy that such a band of friends and brothers should be separated perhaps never to meet again.” The officers determined they would form an organization dedicated to ideas of commemoration, fraternity, and mutual aid. Inspired by these sentiments, the Society of the Cincinnati was founded May 13, 1783, in Newburgh, New York, the location of the Army’s winter quarters.

The proposal presented in Newburgh contained these aims: “To perpetuate, therefore, as well the remembrance of this vast event, as the mutual friendships which have been formed under the pressure of common danger, and, in many instances, cemented by the blood of the parties, the officers of the American Army do hereby, in the most solemn manner, associate, constitute and combine themselves into one Society of Friends, to endure as long as they shall endure, or any of their eldest male posterity, and, in failure thereof, the collateral branches who may be judged worthy of becoming its supporters and Members.”

The Society’s name — Cincinnati — was adopted in honor of a Roman soldier from the fifth century B.C., Lucius Quintus Cincinnatus, who left his plow in the field when he answered the call to lead Rome in battle and returned to his farm after the danger had passed. His sacrifice symbolized the sacrifices that the officers of the Continental Army also made on behalf of their country and to our classically educated forefathers he epitomized what they considered themselves, the citizen soldier. The members of the Society of the Cincinnati elected their commander in chief, General George Washington, to the office of President General in December 1783. Washington accepted this tribute and served in this capacity until his death in 1799. General Knox was the first Secretary General.

Membership in the Society of the Cincinnati was extended to the officers of the Continental Army — as well as Continental navy and marine officers — who had served until the end of the war, plus those who had been declared no longer needed by acts of Congress and those who had served honorably for three years during the war. Also eligible were the oldest male lineal descendants of officers who died in service. The officers of the French Navy and Army who served with the American Army were also entitled to join. In all, approximately 5,500 officers were eligible to join and 2,160 became members.

Upon formation, the Society of the Cincinnati became one of the very first national organizations in the country; the Society was founded even before the Treaty of Paris officially ended the American Revolution. Given the challenges of physical distances in the new nation, the Society in turn formed thirteen state societies, one for each of the states [former colonies], and a fourteenth society in France. Each member, then, belonged to one of these constituent societies as well as the general society with most meetings held on the state level and a triennial meeting held in a different state every three years. While the original rules for membership were outlined in the founding Institution, the constituent societies retained the sole right to interpret these rules and, over time, they adopted some policies that differed from one another, particularly in the area of member succession.

From the beginning, membership in the Society of the Cincinnati was intended to be hereditary. In fact, some early observers feared that the organization would become a hereditary nobility. This component of the Society was hotly debated in its first years of existence, and at times this provision came close to being abolished. In the wake of the American Revolution, such concerns were not surprising. In her 1805 history of the American Revolution, Mercy Otis Warren charged that the Society was founded by Americans enthralled with “the fantastic fopperies of foreign nations.” Furthermore, many officers exhibited “. . .a wild fondness for novel ideas of ranks, titles, and privileged orders, little short of men of princely education, birth, and expectations.” Time alone would prove that these concerns were unfounded. It is interesting to note that many, if not all, of the famous opponents of the Society were persons whose participation in the Revolution did not qualify them for membership in the Society. However, Mercy Otis Warren’s son, Naval Lieutenant James Warren, Jr., was an Original Member of the Society.

Over the 220-year history of the Society of the Cincinnati, the organization’s popularity has waxed and waned. With a few decades after the Revolution some of the constituent societies were dissolved due to lack of members and lack of interest; later they were reconstituted. At other points the rules of membership were expanded, for instance, to include descendants of eligible officers who had not themselves become members. Today, the Society of the Cincinnati consists of 3574 members in 14 constituent societies [268 in Massachusetts] and is dedicated to supporting educational, cultural, and literary activities that promote the ideals of liberty and constitutional government.

A collaboration between the Massachusetts Society of the Cincinnati and the New England Historic Genealogical Society has produced an invaluable database, now available on the NewEnglandAncestors.org website. The database contains information about the original members of the Society of the Cincinnati as well as other officers who were eligible to become members. The sketches are based on the research of J. Archer O’Reilly, III, who is preparing a new edition of Memorials of the Massachusetts Society of the Cincinnati for publication. Last published in 1964, Memorials contains biographical sketches of members, from the original officers to those of the present day. The online database of officers, which was considerably enhanced by the research of NEHGS reference librarian David Allen Lambert, features profiles with more detail than will be available in the upcoming Memorials book. A variety of sources were utilized, including vital records, church records, cemetery records, federal pension records, published genealogies, and many other types of records. The sketch for each member includes (when known):

• Full name

• Birth date and birthplace

• Names of parents

• Death date and place of death

• Marriage dates(s) and place(s)

• Full name of spouse

• Spouse’s birth date and birthplace

• Full names of parents of spouse

• Spouse’s death date and place of death

• Military service

• Society of the Cincinnati membership details

The Society of the Cincinnati database on NewEnglandAncestors.org will eventually contain sketches for all 700+ original Massachusetts officers who were eligible to be members (also known as propositi). Membership in the Massachusetts Society today is derived from a direct or collateral relationship with an original officer. Only one person (always male) is eligible to represent each original officer as a member. (Each member may have a successor member who participates in the Society.) In many cases, membership in the Society of the Cincinnati has been inherited. In other cases, a particular officer’s place became vacant and was not filled, or, in a number of cases, was never filled, beginning with the original eligible officer continuing down to the present day. The Society of the Cincinnati does have open membership slots for a number of original propositi. If you find you have an ancestor eligible for the Society of the Cincinnati and are interested in discovering whether a descendant is currently representing him, you can contact the Society’s Secretary, J. Archer O’Reilly III, 160 Thorndike Street, Brookline, MA 02446 (617-738-9640). 

Whether or not you are eligible for membership in the Society of the Cincinnati, you can take advantage of a wealth of information on the officers of the Continental Army in the NewEnglandAncestors.org database. Looking to memorialize his role in the War for Independence, General Henry Knox expressed a wish for a “ribbon to wear in his hat or in his button hole” so long ago. What better form of commemoration could there be than to study the details of the officers’ lives 220 years after the American Revolution ended ?