Lynch-Hudson Makes History, Joins Daughters of the American Revolution

Regina Lynch-Hudson, a Black Mountain, North Carolina native and tester with FamilyTreeDNA, has become the first descendant of color to join the Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) with lineage tracing back to patriot Colonel John Carson, her fifth-great grandfather, a distinguished Revolutionary War officer and founder of Historic Carson House, the centerpiece of a former 640-acre plantation in Marion, North Carolina. She is also the inaugural African American member of North Carolina’s Greenlee Chapter of the DAR. The DAR is a 190,000-member lineage-based organization founded in 1890 for women who are directly descended from supporters of the American Revolution.

Establishing documented ties to Revolutionary War ancestors is often challenging for African Americans due to the scarcity of records beyond oral histories that link patriots to their enslaved descendants. Lynch-Hudson’s case exemplifies how DNA evidence can help support family narratives.

Extensive analysis in FamilyTreeDNA Group Projects John Carson of Western North Carolina (WNC) and Carson Plantations, administered by Connie Bradshaw of Florida, confirmed that Lynch-Hudson shares genetic ancestry with several white descendants of Colonel John Carson, including three Carson cousins who share significant overlapping DNA segments on the same chromosome, an occurrence that points to a common shared ancestor.

“Lynch-Hudson’s thorough documentation combined with conclusive autosomal DNA results solidified her paper trail to the patriot,” said Rene Bryson, DAR Greenlee Chapter Registrar.
Carson (b. 1752), a Scots Irish immigrant, was a staunch patriot who fought valiantly for American independence. His home, Historic Carson House, constructed in the late 1700s with the labor of enslaved people, provides a window into the past, reflecting the resilience and endurance of those who lived and toiled there, including Carson’s sixty-eight enslaved persons of African descent.

Lynch-Hudson expressed pride in joining the DAR, stating, “My membership in DAR honors faceless foremothers like Kadella (an enslaved Carson matriarch) whose unrecognized contributions have profoundly shaped our nation’s heritage. I hope it also encourages ongoing dialogue about inclusivity and representation in historical organizations. Her induction oath into the DAR was fittingly administered at Historic Carson House, affirming her familial ties to the revered landmark.

Lynch-Hudson, a publicist turned family history reviver, also serves as co-administrator of two FamilyTreeDNA Group projects: the Cragmont Community Project and the Payne Family of Western North Carolina Project, whose tested participants include songbird Freda Payne and former member of the legendary Supremes, Scherrie Payne.