DAR Commemorates American Revolution Patriot Thursday

The David Reese Chapter of the National Society Daughters of the American Revolution will dedicate a commemorative plaque on the grave of American Revolutionary War Patriot Lt. Daniel McKie.

The DAR grave-marking is scheduled for 10:30 a.m. on Thursday at St. Peter’s Cemetery in Oxford.

This ceremony follows the chapter’s 1927 oversight and dedication of a commemorative Federal marker at Lt. McKie’s grave.

Founded in 1899, David Reese is Mississippi’s second-oldest DAR chapter.

The David Reese DAR grave-marking ceremony complements a ceremony hosted in late March by the Oxford-based Daniel McKie Chapter of the Mississippi State Society Sons of the American Revolution during that society’s annual state conference.

A guest luncheon following the DAR grave-marking ceremony will be held at St. Andrews United Methodist Church.

Attendees include Hellen Hicks Polk, State Regent of the MSSDAR, Tommy Thompson, MSSSAR President-Elect, and other DAR and SAR dignitaries. Jerry Lilly, Northern District Director of the MSSSAR, will talk about the life of Lt. McKie, who was born in Lunenberg, Virginia.

McKie joined the Continental patriots at age 19, serving at the battles of Fort Stone and Guilford Courthouse, and residing in South Carolina where he reared a large family before moving westward. McKie was one of the first purchasers of land in Lafayette County in 1836, settling the new area with six sons. He died in 1839.

McKie is the only Revolutionary veteran buried at St. Peter’s Cemetery.

The National Society Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) is a lineage-based women’s service organization whose members can trace their descent from individuals who contributed to American independence during the Revolutionary War.

To learn more about this event or DAR membership, email davidreesemssdar@gmail.com.

Staff report