Chapter History

image descriptionBulloch Hall credit: J. Barrant



The Martha Stewart Bulloch Chapter, NSDAR, was organized by Mrs. George Elyea, Organizing Regent, on April 14, 1986, at Bulloch Hall in Roswell, Georgia with 30 organizing members.

The Martha Stewart Bulloch Chapter is named to honor Martha Stewart Bulloch, the daughter of an American Revolutionary War hero, General Daniel Stewart. She was born in Savannah, Georgia in 1799. She married Senator John Elliott, and after his death ten years later, she married James Stephens Bulloch, a widower.

In 1838, with Martha's six children (three by each husband), the family moved to the new town of Roswell, Georgia and built Bulloch Hall. Ten years later, her husband and a daughter died. With a large family and 25 plantation workers to care for, Martha was left in financial straits. There were sizable debts, but she managed to hold onto her home.

Mittie, her daughter, married Theodore Roosevelt Sr., of New York at Bulloch Hall in 1853. Martha, troubled over the threatening war rumors, joined them in New York where she became indispensable in helping to rear their four children. During the War Between the States, she grieved over family and friends in the South. Martha died in 1864 not knowing if her sons or beloved Bulloch Hall survived the war. Her home is now a museum in Roswell, Georgia.

Martha Stewart Bulloch was buried in New York, but the memory and profound influence of this great lady never died. From this courageous and prudent woman came much of the strength of character and spirit of the Bulloch and Roosevelt descendants. Her grandson, Theodore Roosevelt, Jr., became President of the United States and her great granddaughter, Eleanor Roosevelt, married President Franklin Roosevelt.

The Martha Stewart Bulloch Chapter, NSDAR, is proud to carry her spirit forward under the NSDAR Banner of "God, Home, and Country."