The Order of the First Families of Virginia was instituted on May 11, 1912 "to promote historical, biographical, and genealogical researches concerning Virginia history during the period when she was the only one of the thirteen original colonies.".
The Order of the First Families of Virginia states its membership criteria as follows:
"Membership is limited to lineal descendants of an ancestor who aided in the establishment of the first permanent English colony, Virginia 1607-1624. This aid may also have been rendered by members of the Virginia Company of London if followed by subsequent residence in the Colony of Virginia by such member or his descendants for one or more generations.The Order of the First Families of Virginia does not enter into correspondence with those inquiring in their own behalf, nor is membership information furnished. Proposals for membership made by members by request of candidates are not acceptable, and requests for membership are considered inappropriate.
Membership is strictly by invitation only."No membership list is made available. However, the Order of the First Families of Virginia sponsors the publication of Adventurers of Purse and Person, which provides genealogical information on early colonists through the first six generations. The most recent edition is the Fourth, edited by the Order's genealogist John Frederick Dorman and published in three volumes, 2004-2007, to celebrate the four hundredth anniversary of the founding of Jamestown. Two groups of colonists are included: 1. Virginia Company shareholders "who either came to Virginia themselves between 1607-1624/4, and had descendants, or who did not come to Virginia within that period but whose grandchildren were resident there;" and 2. "Immigrants to Virginia ..., 1607-1624/5, who left descendants."
Since the membership criteria of the Order of the First Families of Virginia is broadly similar to the stated inclusion criteria for Adventurers of Purse and Person, it follows that descendants of one or more of the "adventurers" included in the book, are also descendants of one or more of the First Families of Virginia.
Famous quotes containing the words order of the, order of, order and/or families:
“Art and religion first; then philosophy; lastly science. That is the order of the great subjects of life, that’s their order of importance.”
—Muriel Spark (b. 1918)
“It is well within the order of things
That man should listen when his mate sings;
But the true male never yet walked
Who liked to listen when his mate talked.”
—Anna Wickham (1884–1947)
“It seems only yesterday that we saw
The movie with the cows in it
And turned to one at your side, who burped
As morning saw a new garnet-and-pea-green order propose
Itself out of the endless bathos, like science-fiction lumps.”
—John Ashbery (b. 1927)
“Happy or unhappy, families are all mysterious. We have only to imagine how differently we would be described—and will be, after our deaths—by each of the family members who believe they know us.”
—Gloria Steinem (b. 1934)