In recognition of the upcoming 250th celebration of the adoption of the Declaration of Independence, the DAR America 250! Committee of the Botetourt County Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution is placing a spotlight on our Patriot ancestors who helped our country achieve American Independence.
Colonel Stephen Adams Bayard is the Patriot ancestor of member Kathy Stevens Austin. Col. Bayard is her fourth great-grandfather. Col. Bayard was born February 23, 1744, in Bohemia Manor in Cecil County, Md. to Samuel Bayard and Francina Mauldin Bayard. He married Elizabeth MacKay, the daughter of Revolutionary War Col. Aeneas Mackay.
Col. Bayard registered to serve in 1776 at age 32 at the same time Thomas Jefferson’s Declaration of Independence was endorsed by Congress, signed in Philadelphia and the colonies declared their independence.
After Col.Bayard’s military service, in 1787 he, his wife and her brother, Samuel Mackay, founded Elizabeth, Pa., a town on the banks of the Monongahela River; they named the town after Elizabeth Mackay Bayard. The Bayards remained there the rest of their lives.
Col. Bayard died December 13, 1815. His final resting place is Allegheny Cemetery in Allegheny County, Pa.
The Daughters of the American Revolution is a non-profit, non-political organization open to any woman who has lineage to a Patriot who contributed to the success of the American Revolution. Founded over 125 years ago, it is focused on service to the community and fosters Patriotism, Education and Historic Preservation.
~ Botetourt DAR
