The National Society of The Colonial Dames of America

What The National Society of The Colonial Dames of America does

The National Society of The Colonial Dames of America (NSCDA) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit membership organization founded in 1891 in Philadelphia and headquartered at Dumbarton House, a Federal-period museum in Washington, D.C. The organization is structured as a federation of 43 semi-autonomous corporate societies covering 42 states and the District of Columbia, with approximately 15,000 members nationwide and a small central staff of 8-10 at the national headquarters. Its mission centers on historic preservation, patriotic service, civic education, and the curation of American colonial history.

NSCDA operates a portfolio of distinct programs and assets. The Great American Treasures Museum Alliance unifies 70+ historic homes and sites under a coordinated digital platform with a public-facing passport program. Core content assets include the Register of Ancestors (a genealogical database of 10,000+ qualifying colonial ancestors maintained by colonial state societies), the Sampler Survey (a searchable collection of historical needlework built on the 1921 American Samplers publication), the Collections Library, and the Treasures 250 initiative showcasing 250 objects for America's Semiquincentennial. Educational and service programs include the Congressional Essay Contest (for high school students), the American Indian Medical Scholarship (AIMS, established 1928, supporting Native American healthcare students), the Attingham Scholarship (for museum professionals), the American Heritage Local Impact Awards, and the 250 by 250 Founding Females Initiative. Military-service programs include a 2021 partnership with America's VetDogs and ongoing collaboration with the Library of Congress Veterans History Project (500+ interviews completed).

The revenue model is donation-driven, with six tiered annual giving levels ranging from $200 (Colonist Society) to $10,000+ (First Ladies Society), supplemented by planned giving, stock gifts, IRA qualified charitable distributions, Dumbarton House event rentals, and grants. Distribution occurs through the federated corporate society network, the Great American Treasures website, the Dumbarton House museum venue, and direct scholarship distributions. Strategic partnerships extend reach with the National Trust for Historic Preservation, America's VetDogs, the Library of Congress, the Workshop Foundation, and others.

Name

The National Society of The Colonial Dames of America

Legal name

The National Society of the Colonial Dames of America

Website

https://nscda.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1891

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

The National Society of The Colonial Dames of America is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit founded in 1891 that operates a federation of 43 state societies and 15,000+ members across the U.S., stewarding 70+ historic sites, maintaining genealogical and material culture databases, and delivering historic preservation, educational, and patriotic service programs including scholarships and veteran support.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Historic Preservation Nonprofit Services

NAICS

Museums, Historical Sites, and Similar Institutions (712), Museums (712110), Civic and Social Organizations (813410)

SIC

Services-Membership Organizations (8600), Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYBPAGAHAF

Libraries, Archives & Special Collections

Business & Public Services/Nonprofit, NGO & Social Services/Arts, Culture & Heritage Nonprofits

Keywords

• Historic preservation
• Patriotic service
• Membership programs
• Genealogy research
• Museum collections

Headquarters

HQ city

Washington

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Member Contributions and Annual Appeal: Members contribute through annual appeals at various giving levels from $200 (Colonist Society) to $10,000+ (First Ladies Society). Primary unrestricted funding source supporting operations and mission activities.
2. Planned Giving and Legacy Gifts: Bequests, retirement plan designations, life insurance beneficiary designations, and life income gifts through Legacy Circle program.
3. Dumbarton House Fund for the Future: Designated gifts specifically for stewardship and maintenance of the national headquarters historic property.
4. Gifts of Stock and Securities: Donations of mutual fund shares, closely held stock, and other securities.
5. IRA Qualified Charitable Distributions: Donors age 70.5+ can contribute up to $100,000 directly from IRAs without federal income tax.
6. Dumbarton House Event Rentals: Historic property available for corporate events, meetings, and weddings generating rental revenue.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

The National Society of The Colonial Dames of America (NSCDA) is a nonprofit membership organization that stewards historic properties, curates collections, maintains the Register of Ancestors genealogical database, and administers educational scholarships and patriotic service programs. Its offerings include the Great American Treasures Museum Alliance of 70+ historic sites, the American Indian Medical Scholarship, the Congressional Essay Contest, Dumbarton House museum, and veterans support partnerships.

Product overview

The National Society of the Colonial Dames of America (NSCDA) is a nonprofit membership organization founded in 1891 that operates a portfolio of historic preservation, educational, and patriotic service programs. Its core offerings include Great American Treasures (an alliance of 70+ historic sites), the American Indian Medical Scholarship (AIMS), Congressional Essay Contest, and American Heritage Awards. The organization also maintains the Register of Ancestors (10,000+ genealogical records), Dumbarton House as its national headquarters museum, the Sampler Survey collection of historical needlework, and partnerships supporting veterans through VetDogs and the Veterans History Project. These programs collectively support historic preservation, education, civic engagement, and service to the military.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Great American Treasures Museum Alliance An alliance of 70+ historic homes and sites across the United States that tell diverse stories of the nation's history, forming a network of museum properties, monuments, and historic sites owned or substantially supported by NSCDA and its corporate societies.
• American Indian Medical Scholarship (AIMS) Scholarship program providing $1,500 per semester for up to 8 semesters to American Indian, Alaskan Native, and Hawaiian Native students pursuing healthcare careers, with a commitment to serve their communities. Established in 1928.
• Congressional Essay Contest Annual writing competition for high school students (freshmen through seniors) offering scholarships for the Congressional Seminar in Washington, D.C., a civic-focused workshop.
• American Heritage Local Impact Awards Awards that recognize non-profit organizations or groups dedicated to patriotism and American heritage, supporting Dames' involvement in their local communities through rotating Spotlight Societies.
• Attingham Scholarship Scholarship for museum professionals employed by NSCDA properties to study collections and landscapes of historic English country homes at the Attingham Summer School in Britain.
• Dumbarton House Museum Federal-period house museum serving as NSCDA National Headquarters in Washington, D.C., AAM accredited, originally named Bellevue and purchased by NSCDA in 1928. Currently closed for HVAC overhaul.
• Sampler Survey Searchable collection of needlework samplers and verses launched to preserve historic methods of women's education and create opportunities for genealogical research into original seamstresses, built upon the seminal 1921 American Samplers publication.
• Collections Library Curated databases of artifacts from museums' vast collections including documents, artwork, housewares, and clothing offering insights into daily life in previous eras.
• Veterans History Project Partnership with the Library of Congress to collect and preserve firsthand recollections of military veterans, with NSCDA Dames having conducted over 500 interviews since the partnership began.
• Register of Ancestors Database listing over 10,000 eligible ancestors from 13 Colonial State Societies, including an increasing number of female ancestors, maintained by each Colonial State Society.
• America's VetDogs Partnership Program Partnership with America's VetDogs providing service dogs to blind, deaf, and impaired veterans, active duty service members, and first responders, with NSCDA corporate societies sponsoring puppies through the 'Name a Puppy' program.
• Dumbarton House Rentals & Events Event venue rental service offering Dumbarton House's gardens and grounds for corporate luncheons, meetings, weddings, and receptions.
• Great American Treasures Museum Alliance Grant Annual grant awarded to member sites to support museum properties as they work to preserve and promote the nation's history.

Quantifiable outcome

• $168,000+ awarded annually in scholarship assistance to students in American History-related fields
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Ten partnerships are on record, tiered core, flagship and minor.

• America's VetDogscoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2021NSCDA partnered with America's VetDogs in 2021, a program providing service dogs to blind, deaf, and impaired veterans, active duty service members, and first responders. NSCDA corporate societies participate through the VetDogs 'Name a Puppy' sponsorship program.
• Library of Congress Veterans History ProjectcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNSCDA members conduct, document, and catalog interviews with veterans for the Library of Congress collection. Since the partnership began, over 500 veteran interviews have been completed.
• National Trust for Historic PreservationflagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerNSCDA received the Trustee Emeritus Award for Excellence in Stewardship of Historic Sites from the National Trust for Historic Preservation.
• American Red CrossminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerDuring WWI and WWII, NSCDA partnered with the Red Cross to support troops through USO center funding and Red Cross supply donations.
• Sulgrave ManorminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerNSCDA maintains a relationship with Sulgrave Manor in the UK, with a Senior Representative serving on the board.
• Gunston HallflagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerGunston Hall, historic home of George Mason IV, is owned by NSCDA and serves as a major Great American Treasures site. Virginia Nicholson serves as First Regent.
• American Friends of AttinghamminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerNSCDA works with the American Friends of Attingham to provide scholarships for museum professionals to attend the Attingham Summer School in Britain.
• Workshop FoundationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Workshop Foundation runs the Congressional Seminar in Washington, D.C., which NSCDA's Congressional Essay Contest winners attend with full scholarships.
• Smithsonian InstitutionminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerIn the 1970s, NSCDA helped provide the National Museum of American Art with an inventory of pictures and portraits by American painters prior to 1914.
• Dumbarton HouseflagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerNSCDA owns and operates Dumbarton House as its national headquarters, an AAM accredited museum, and event venue.

Scale indicators9 records

Recent moves10 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Preservation Virginia: Direct peer and the oldest statewide preservation organization in the U.S., stewarding multiple historic properties including Jamestown — where NSCDA itself built the 1907 Church at Jamestown. Comparable federated-state nonprofit model with historic site stewardship and educational programs.
• Mount Vernon (George Washington's Mount Vernon): Direct peer operating a major privately-owned colonial-era historic site (George Washington's estate) with museum accreditation, educational programming, and donor-funded operations. Comparable as a flagship colonial-era preservation site with strong commercial event rental and membership revenue streams.
• Daughters of the American Revolution: Direct peer operating an almost identical lineage-based membership model for descendants of American Revolution patriots. DAR stewards 30+ historic properties and operates a comparable federation of state societies, congressional essay contests, and patriotic service programs — making it the closest functional analog to NSCDA.
• National Society United States Daughters of 1812: Direct peer lineage-based patriotic society for descendants of those who served during the War of 1812. Comparable federated membership structure, women's patriotic mission, scholarship programs, and historic preservation focus — operates at a smaller scale than DAR or NSCDA but with a closely analogous model.
• Sons of the American Revolution: Direct lineage-based peer for male descendants of American Revolution patriots, with a comparable federated society model, patriotic service programs, and historic preservation mission. Operates as a parallel organization with similar scholarship, essay contest, and civic engagement activities.
• Colonial Williamsburg Foundation: Direct peer operating a large-scale living-history museum site dedicated to colonial American history preservation and education. Comparable mission (telling America's founding story through preserved places), similar donor-funded nonprofit model, and similar audience of heritage tourists and educators.

Broad incumbents

• Smithsonian Institution: A federal-affiliated museum complex where NSCDA's Executive Director previously worked. Comparable as a major U.S. museum operator and heritage educator, though vastly larger in scale; relevant as both a peer talent source and a partner/competitor for historic preservation programming.
• National Trust for Historic Preservation: The largest U.S. nonprofit dedicated to historic preservation, awarding the very Trustee Emeritus Award NSCDA received. Comparable as a national-scale preservation body that oversees and funds multiple historic sites, though its mission is broader and not limited to colonial-era properties.

Others

• American Association for State and Local History: National professional association serving historic sites, museums, and history organizations — including NSCDA member properties. Comparable as a peer organization within the same ecosystem, providing accreditation, training, and grantmaking that overlap with NSCDA's Great American Treasures programming.
• National Park Foundation: Official nonprofit partner of the U.S. National Park Service, which stewards numerous colonial-era historic sites comparable to those in NSCDA's Great American Treasures alliance. Relevant as an adjacent heritage preservation peer that shares funding pools and audiences but operates at federal scale.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/colonialdames
• Instagraminstagram.com/nscda
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/the-national-society-of-the-colonial-dames-of-america

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles19 records

Subsidiaries2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about The National Society of The Colonial Dames of America