The First Families of Pennsylvania (FFP) is a lineage society with three levels that is open to any GSP member who can prove their descent from an ancestor who resided in what is now Pennsylvania during the time periods listed below:

•  Colony & Commonwealth – 1681- 1790
•  Keystone & Cornerstone – 1791-1865
•  Pennsylvania Proud – 1866-1900

Members will receive a certificate and membership pin upon induction at the Annual Meeting of the Genealogical Society of Pennsylvania.

How Do I Join?

If you believe that your ancestor qualifies you for membership in First Families of Pennsylvania, you can download the application form, fill it out, and send it, along with a nonrefundable, one-time fee of $40.00 (check payable to GSP-FFP) to:

First Families of Pennsylvania
c/o Genealogical Society of PA
1300 Locust Street
Philadelphia, PA 19107

Applications are due by 30 November of each year. New members are inducted at the GSP Annual Meeting held in the spring of each year. The submitted application and all supporting documents shall become the property of GSP.

Who Qualifies?

The first family ancestor must have been a resident of Pennsylvania during one of the three time periods listed above. Evidence submitted as proof must be sufficient to prove that the applicant is directly descended from the claimed ancestor, and that the ancestor resided in Pennsylvania during the selected time period. See Application Form and Rules of Evidence below for further details.

Application Form

  Click here to get a printable application form to fill out by hand or by typewriter.
  Click here to get an RTF version of the application form, allowing you to use a word processor to fill it out. (Note that as of now, there is no provision for online submission of your application; you will have to print the result and mail it in. However, use of this RTF version of the form makes it easier for you to update your application, e.g., replacing one source by a better one. Further, the RTF format may later facilitate the semi-automated preparation of a chart illustrating your descent from your first family ancestor.) Note that Microsoft WordPad will not print this application form properly, but Microsoft Word, OpenOffice.org Writer, and other word processing programs will. You should be able to:
   1. start up Word, Writer, etc.,
   2. use the word processor's File menu to load the filled-in RTF application form, and then
   3. print (again via the File menu).

Rules of Evidence

• All evidence submitted as proof shall be sufficient to prove that the applicant is directly descended from the claimed ancestor. The evidence must prove residence of the ancestor by the claimed date and be sufficient to differentiate between any two persons of the same name residing in the same area at the same time.
• The direct line from applicant to ancestor must be proved at every step. Blood line descent only is acceptable; adopted children do not qualify as a step in the lineage.
• Remember that quality of evidence is more important than quantity.
• Each document submitted must include a complete citation on the front of the document. Applications without citations will be returned. Examples of proper citation may be found in the book Evidence by Elizabeth Shown Mills.
• Documents must state the fact they are documenting. An individual named as “heir” in court records is not necessarily related to the deceased.
• Primary evidence is the best evidence. Birth, death and marriage records and courthouse records, such as wills and deeds, are considered primary evidence.
• Family bible records may be considered primary evidence if event dates are contemporary with the publication of the Bible. A copy of the title page must be submitted. The current location of the Bible should be given.
• Letters, diaries and family records can be accepted if they state facts that the writer could have known “first hand”. The identity of the writer and date of the document are necessary.
• Secondary evidence such as census records, newspaper accounts, etc, will be considered as corroborative evidence.
• County histories and family genealogies (published or unpublished) will not be considered as documentation, but as secondary or corroborative evidence.
• Lineage papers from other societies will not be considered as documentation.
• Photocopies of original documents are acceptable. Transcripts, however, must be certified as a “true copy” by a courthouse official, cemetery employee, etc.
• Tombstone photographs must be legible and accompanied by a transcription of the stone.
• Documents written in any language other than English must be accompanied by a translation certified as a “true translation” by the translator, not the applicant or a family member.
• Married female applicants must include a copy of their marriage record if they use their husband's surname.
• The applicant's name and address must be on the reverse of every piece of paper submitted.