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December 23, 1933 -The 176^th Chapter in New York was organized in the north wing of historic Fort Crailo in Rensselaer. State Regent Mrs. Hamilton Gibbes gave the oath of office to the new officers. Ruth Electa Schaefer presented the organizing Chapter with a gavel made of the wood of the battleship, Revenge, which saw nine days action on Lake Champaign during the American Revolution. We still use that gavel for meetings.

Fort Crailo turned out to be a "War Baby" with the early members holding many events to raise funds for the war effort. They donated to the Red Cross, Guide Dogs for the Blind, (so that any soldier returning from the war blinded might have a guide dog), and to the "Metal Locator" fund. These were "extra" effort since Fort Crailo contributed to numerous NSDAR funds.

Fort Crailo was one of 4 Chapters to host the 48^th State Conference in 1943. Among the attendees: President General Mrs. William Pouch and Vice President General Mrs. George Duffy who wrote, "it was one of the finest state conferences I have attended."

Fort Crailo, the building, was offered to the DAR by the VanRensselaer family, but at the time the organization couldn’t afford it’s repair and upkeep. However, the Chapter which is it’s namesake, actively involved in protecting historical sites, helped get the Fort Crailo building listed on the National Historic Register in 1962.

The 1980's were a lean time for Fort Crailo. We were flat broke. Florence Tompson, a former Regent of the Chapter passed away and left us AT&T stock, which we had to borrow against in order to have our 50^th anniversary celebration. We paid that loan back and have set the money aside she left us in perpetuity, the interest to be used for chapter awards.

Nevertheless, in 1982 Chapter members attending Continental Congress were given a personal tour of the Capitol Building by the New York Representative. Jerry Solomon, including three Junior Pages at Continental Congress. That same year, Fort Crailo donated a flag flown over the United States Capitol to Camp Becker, organized by Albany High School Principal, and Olympic Boxing Coach Ben Becker. It's a summer camp for underprivileged children. Becker coached Cassius Clay, aka Mohammed Ali, who won an Olympic Gold Medal, among others. We have given many flags to many organizations over the years.

The Chapter has received many awards, from National over the years and many members have attended Continental Congress in Washington, D.C., members have marched with the DAR in the National Independence Day Parade and sung in the National All-American Chorus. Individually, many members have received awards from National and the SAR.

We have sponsored many community members for various awards for Conservation, Community Service, Preservation and the DAR Medal of Honor–the highest award given by the DAR. We help support the DAR schools, and sponsor local school children for scholarships as well as sponsoring teachers for honors from the DAR. We support the VA hospital and troops overseas and attend local Naturalization ceremonies. We enjoy sharing meetings with our C.A.R. members and support their Chapter’s activities.

As Fort Crailo Chapter and DAR have entered the new millennium, we have grown and changed to continue to be a vital service organization in modern times. Currently, most members receive their newsletter via e-mail. As times and the world change, the Mission Statement of the DAR is as important today as it was in 1890: "To promote historic preservation, education and patriotism."