FARMINGTON — The Colonial Daughters Chapter, Daughters of the American Revolution, met recently at the Fairbanks Union Church with 13 members and three guests present.

The business meeting, with Regent Marcia White presiding, started the morning. The president general’s report was read by Theo Ross and the National Defense News by Joanne Page.

In keeping with George Washington’s birthday, Elaine Wells shared some personal information concerning Washington. Connie Hiltz read a copy of a letter written in 1776 by Washington to the Passamaquoddy Indian Tribe at Pleasant Point, thanking them for their support during the Revolutionary War. The letter was taken from the History of Perry, Maine.

At noon the group had a fish chowder luncheon served by the church women.

Dain Trafton of Phillips presented the afternoon program, speaking about his ancestor, John Dain, American Revolutionary War Patriot from Durham. Trafton shared his collection of personal tales of his ancestor’s encounters during the war and information from a copy of his patriot’s handwritten affidavit, a requirement that is needed when applying for a war pension.

To deter desertion and resignation during the Revolutionary War, the government promised to provide pensions after the war was over. The Continental Congress enacted the first pension legislation on Aug. 26, 1776.

After the war, to receive a pension veterans had to describe their wartime service in an affidavit sworn before a state or federal judge. Each affidavit included the veteran’s age, present residence, enlistment papers, war service, pay receipts, furlough papers, passes, commissions, warrants, discharges, physical disability (if any) and other original records. It could describe the organization of military units, movement of troops, plans for campaigns and personal encounters. A few files had letters by servicemen that gave firsthand accounts of military and civil events.

Trafton is a retired professor of English, earning his PhD in English from the University of California, Berkeley. He has published fiction and poetry as well as scholarly and critical essays on English, American, French, Italian and neo Latin literature.

The chapter will meet at 11 a.m. Tuesday, March 22, at the Fairbanks Union Church. Lunch will be served at noon; the cost is $10 a person. The public is invited.