I was looking for information on a site that one of the DAR chapters in the UK supports, Washington Old Hall (not far from Newcastle), the ancestral home of -- you guessed it -- George Washington's family, and I found that there is a U.S. partner to Britain's National Trust. It's called the Royal Oak Foundation and costs about $65 per year for individuals but gets you into all the National Trust locations free and includes discounts on merchandise. The Foundation has been around for 40 years, the National Trust since 1895. It was established to conserve culturally significant environmental sites and historic buildings and now owns hundreds of parks, farms, manor houses, ruins, pubs, monasteries, villages, fens, inns, a former workhouse, a cave dwelling, and a gold mine. Planning a trip to the UK? Stay in one of the historic cottages they rent out; prices seem to be about US$600 per week. Or type in the name of your destination and see which National Trust sites are within 25 miles of Plymouth, Scrooby, or wherever else you are going. In and around London membership gets you a 50% discount on admissions, still a good deal because you can fit more in on your itinerary. Admission prices on sites I checked varied from about US$6-10, so half a dozen tours might earn your membership back for you plus you would have an extra memorable trip to the home of your Mayflower ancestors.

I got word recently that the Washington Old Hall Chapter has dissolved. (MM- 5.12.14)

This time it took just under 3 months to double from 200 entries to 400, instead of 10 1/2 months to go from 100 to 200. We are still averaging a little under 2 entries for every new face.