About Us
Our History. Our Purpose. Our Commitment.
The United Daughters of the Confederacy® was founded in Nashville, Tennessee, in 1894 by women seeking to honor their family members and ancestors who served in the Confederate military or contributed to the Southern war effort.
The Objects of the UDC are:
- Historical - Including the preservation of records, journals, battlefields, monuments, buildings, grave sites, and the stories of those who lived the history.
- Educational - Funding scholarships for both undergraduate and graduate study, supporting and contributing to libraries and archives, and maintaining one of the most extensive collections on Southern history in the country.
- Benevolent - UDC members have given generously for more than a century to support those in need. Most recently, our members gave volunteer hours, time and money to help the victims of Hurricane Helene in North Carolina and Tennessee, even financing the building of two bridges to provide residents of the stricken area access to their homes. In 2024, donations of time/talent totaled 502,734 hours, value of items donated $1,060,819 and monetary donations $2,938,078.
- Patriotic - Recognizing over 200 active-duty military members and veterans annually for their service to the nation as well as participating in campaigns to aide wounded servicemen and women and taking part in patriotic ceremonies. We have 26 VAVS Representatives, Deputies and Associates and 37 volunteers at VA Hospitals andclinics who logged over 1,800 hours last year. Donations to VA in goods, services and monetary contributions totaled $64,131 last year. Members sent 7,641 cards and letters to active-duty military.
- Memorial - Besides erecting markers and monuments recognizing historic sites and those who sacrificed their lives in the War Between the States, we honor the memory of all the fallen, as well as those who survived and carried on.
Over time, our members have engaged in a wide variety of projects–from documenting genealogical records and restoring cemeteries to recording the internment sites of Confederate soldiers and building a database of Black Confederate Soldiers, both enslaved and free, so that their stories will not be forgotten. These efforts have been meaningful to many families and communities across the South.
We are a non-racial, non-political, non-profit organization made up of women descended from those who served honorably in the Confederate military or provided material support to the cause.
Our membership spans generations and states, unified by a commitment to service, remembrance, and historical education.
We recognize the evolving conversations around history and memory, and we are committed to engaging truthfully, respectfully and thoughtfully with the past while serving in the present.
The UDC strives to understand others, the world and ourselves as we seek to co-exist without destruction. The history of Southerners and their efforts are not to be forgotten and are acknowledged with reverence and honor for coming to the aid of their states and doing their duty.
The United Daughters of the Confederacy strongly denounces any individual or group that promotes racial divisiveness. We condemn hate groups that use our flag and symbols for reprehensible purposes. Join us in affirming that Confederate memorials and monuments are part of our shared, diverse American history and should remain in place.