The History of the National Society of the Sons of the American Revolution, Volume IV, is the official compendium of officers of one of the largest male societies in the United States from 2000 to 2017. Rich in detail, this book has a chronological narrative of the meetings and events of the National Society of the Sons of the American Revolution (NSSAR or SAR). The biographical vignettes of the officers read like a Who's Who of SAR. Founded in 1889 and headquartered in Louisville, Kentucky, the SAR boasts tens of thousands of active members in over 550 chapters across the United States and internationally. The SAR is a non-profit, non-partisan organization dedicated to promoting patriotism, preserving American history, and promoting education for future generations. SAR members volunteer untold hours of service each year in their local communities. SAR is very active in assisting veterans. We proudly assist teachers with living history interpreters, lesson planning materials, and reenactment events for school-aged youth to attend.
John O. Thornhill was born and raised in Missouri, after high school, John enlisted in the U.S. Marine Corps in 1963 and was stationed with the Third Marine Division. In May 1964, transferred to Marine Barracks, U. S. Naval Base, Long Beach, CA as a Security Guard and was then promoted to Training NCO and detachment Nuclear, Biological, and Chemical Warfare Defense NCO. John was stationed at Long Beach for just over 3 years.
At the end of his enlistment, John attended Central Missouri State University where he earned a degree in Business Administration. After college, John worked for Swift and Co in various capacities for XX years in Indiana, Missouri, Kansas, Minnesota, and North Carolina. In North Carolina, he took a position in the NC Department of Labor where he worked for 20 years.
John first joined the SAR in the George Rogers Clark Chapter in the Indiana Society. Moving to Missouri, he helped launch the Harry Truman Chapter in Independence. When he moved to North Carolina, John joined the Lower Cape Fear Chapter in Wilmington. He has served as Chapter President, Secretary, Treasurer, and Historian. On the State level, he served as Historian, Vice-President, and State President. Over the years, he has helped re-organize a local chapter and supervised the start-up of an additional four new chapters.
In 2017, John was elected to the position of Historian General and spent his term updating the history of the National Society. This volume is the result of the work he compiled during his term.
