Listed below are the Patriot ancestors of our chapter members and the states in which they served. American Revolutionary War Patriots include signers of the Declaration of Independence, members of local and state militias, members of the Continental Army or Continental Navy, men and women who rendered other types of aid to the cause of American independence, and those taking oaths of loyalty. With a few exceptions, military service began with the Battle of Lexington (19 April 1775) and ended when the British evacuated New York (26 November 1783). Patriots may have also provided civil service, conducting public business in the newly formed American states.