This item is part of The Dr. Albert Goodwin Collection. Click Here to view all items in this collection.
In Gold with red enamels, weighing 10.7 grams, obverse with an eight-pointed star surmounted by a crown, but missing its red enameled conjoined initials ""CJ"" (Colonial Governors) in the center, reverse maker marked ""BB&B"" (Bailey, Banks & Biddle, Philadelphia), hand engraved ""778/50"" and engraved in running script ""Gail A. Treat. / First member in New Jersey / First Chairman in New Jersey, and organizer of New Jersey Chapter 1896."", measuring 32 mm (w) x 38 mm (h), 5.6 grams, very fine.
Footnote: The Hereditary Order of Descendants of Colonial Governors is a hereditary society composed of men and women who can prove their descent from a colonial-era governor. Founded in 1896 by Miss Mary Cabell Richardson of Covington, Kentucky, the Order’s mission is to “commemorate the services of those men who, prior to July 4, 1776, singly exercised supreme executive power in the American colonies and who laid in them the foundations of stable government and of the respect for the civil law and authority which made the maintenance of their future independence possible.” The first two Governors General served the Order for the first seven years of its existence. In 1903, Ms Gail A. Treat of East Orange, New Jersey became the new Governor General of the Order. Ms Treat was a descendant of Robert Treat, whose served as governor from 1683-1698. Ms Treat was the first member in New Jersey, was the First Chairman in New Jersey and was the organizer of the New Jersey chapter in 1896. She would go on to serve as Governor General from 1903 to 1944 and upon her death, all of the records of the Order vanished and the group entered a period of dormancy. In 1954, a group of members reorganized the Order and sought to preserve whatever records and information they could locate. The Order published a register of known members in 1980, and in 2004, the Lineage Book II was produced. In 2006, the Order published a comprehensive list of the Colonial Governors Prior to July 4, 1776. The Order presently consists of over 500 members throughout the United States of America and overseas and has its annual meeting in April of each year in Washington, DC at the Metropolitan Club.
This offering is a part of the "Dr. Albert Goodwin Collection", a preeminent assemblage of world Orders, Medals, and Decorations composed solely by Dr.Goodwin between 1946-1967. Dr. Goodwin had a successful career as an educator and prominent physician in New York as well as actively serving in both World Wars with the United States Medical Corps. He acted as both President and Vice-President of the Orders and Medals Society of America (OMSA) and is responsible for organizing their first convention in 1960. He maintained further membership with the American Society of Military Collectors, the International Orders Research Society, and the American Numismatic Society. His knowledge and passion for history and awards is evident in this meticulously compiled collection that is now available in its entirety for the first time exclusively on eMedals.com.