Charter of the Joseph Bucklin Society

General description.

The Joseph Bucklin Society is a national organization dedicated to historical and genealogical research and the dissemination of educational material. The Society is not connected with any denomination or political group.

BECAUSE: The colonists of the seventeen century who planted the Massachusetts Bay Colony and the Rhode Island and Providence Plantations Colony were one of the most influential settlers of North America. (William Bucklin and his descendants were a vital part of that group.) AND BECAUSE: Joseph Bucklin, in the Gaspee Affair of 1772, was the first American who deliberately shot an English military man in an attack upon the English. (The Gaspee Affair was an outstanding event in the formation of the American Revolution. Joseph Bucklin and his relatives were typical of the early Americans who rose in the American Revolution to start what became a new nation.) NOW THEREFORE: The Joseph Bucklin Society is named for Joseph Bucklin and is dedicated to researching and preserving the history of the Massachusetts and Rhode Island colonists and transmitting their example of courage, zeal, faith, duty, and honor. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Scope of our work.

Our scope of research, study, and education includes:

(1) the Massachusetts Bay Colony and the Rhode Island and Providence Plantations Colony, in the period 1600--- 1799; and England in the same time period (with particular reference to the Dorset area), and (2) the Bucklin family, with particular reference to the period 1600 --- 1899, and (3) the Gaspee Affair (including the legal and political background as it relates to the American Revolution). Membership:

A. Full Member Membership. Full membership is open to all men and women of good character and either: [descent] are of: descent from one or more Bucklins, or descent from participants in the Gaspee Affair, or descent from others who settled in the American colonies before 1775, or [participation] have participated in an event commemorating the Gaspee Affair.

B. Supporting Member Membership. Associate membership in the Society is available for those interested in supporting the purposes of the Society. Upon unanimous decision of the Officers as to an applicant, persons who wish to support the Society may purchase Supporting Membership with such membership rights and participation as the Officers may from time to time determine for the class of membership.

C. Honored Member Membership. Upon unanimous decision of the Officers, persons who have given valuable voluntary services in conformity with the ideals and purposes of the Society may be awarded a special non-hereditary class of membership, with such membership honors, rights and participation as the Officers from time to time may determine for the individual then to be admitted

Goals of the Joseph Bucklin Society.

Our goals are:

To research, preserve, and publish the events of the Gaspee Affair, its historical background, and the succeeding events up to the time of the Lexington Alarm, both in England and New England.

To research, preserve, and publish the geopolitical events of 1600 to 1799 in England and New England.

To locate the origins and family histories in England of the Bucklins.

To make a genealogical database including all the descendants of the Bucklins to the eighth generation from William Bucklin, with the reconstructed biographies and ancestries of the Bucklins as well as can be established, plus the lineages to the present day as submitted to us by the membership.

To call attention to the books, articles and research established both by others and also by our own research findings.

To engage in public ceremonies honoring the colonists of the Massachusetts Bay Colony and the Rhode Island Colony, the participants in the Gaspee Affair, and Americans living at the time of the American Revolution.

Assets.

No part of the earnings of the organization shall inure to the benefit of, or be distributable to its members, trustees, officers, or other private persons, except that the organization may pay reasonable compensation for services rendered and may make payments and distributions in furtherance of the purposes of the organization. No substantial part of the activities of the organization shall be the carrying on of propaganda, or otherwise attempting to influence legislation, and the organization shall not participate in, or intervene in any political campaign on behalf of or in opposition to any candidate for public office. This organization shall not, except to an insubstantial degree, engage in any activities or exercise any powers that are not in furtherance of the purposes of this organization. Upon the dissolution of the organization, assets shall be distributed for one or more exempt purposes within the meaning of section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code, or the corresponding section of any future federal tax code, or to a an organization which is organized and operated exclusively for such purposes. or shall be distributed to the federal government, or to a state of local government, for a public purpose.

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NOTE: THIS WEB SITE COPY OF THE CHARTER AND BYLAWS IS APPROXIMATE AND IS FOR GENERAL INFORMATION ONLY. THE ORIGINAL CHARTER AND BYLAWS MAY HAVE DIFFERENT TEXT, FORMATTING, SECTION NUMBERS, OR OTHER TYPOGRAPHICAL DIFFERENCES. ALSO THIS WEB SITE MAY NOT HAVE ALL AMENDMENTS AS THEY MAY EXIST FROM TIME TO TIME.

BYLAWS

Office.

The location of the principal office of the Society shall be fixed by the Officers. It may be any location within the United States. The Secretary shall keep a copy of these bylaws and minutes of all meetings of the Officers at the principal office. Principal office as of 11 June 2000: 8063 South Michele Lane, Tempe, AZ 85284.

Internet addresses and pages may be maintained by the Society.

Officers.

All business and affairs of the Society shall be managed solely by the Officers. Initially the Offices shall be a Chairperson, a Vice-Chairperson, an Executive Director, a Secretary and a Treasurer. The Chairperson shall be in general charge of the organization. Should the Chairperson be absent or otherwise incapable, the Vice-Chairperson will assume the duties of the office. The Executive Director shall be the chief executive officer and shall manage the day to day affairs of the Society. The Secretary shall keep accurate minutes of the meetings of the Officers, and will chiefly be responsible for formal correspondence with the members. The Treasurer shall be the Society's chief financial officer and shall keep and maintain correct books of all accounts and transactions of the Society. Any number, or all, of the five Offices can be held by the same person. An Officer may resign at any time upon written notification to the Chairperson or Secretary. Any Officer may be removed at any meeting of the Officers upon a majority vote of the Officers. Any Office vacated can be filled by a majority decision at a meeting of the Officers. Offices can be eliminated or New Offices can be created by majority vote of the existing Officers. The number of Offices may never be less than three nor more than seven.

Initially Officers will receive no salary, pay, or compensation for their services other than reimbursement for expenses as filed with and recorded by the Treasurer. After membership reaches 25 members, a suitable honorarium for services rendered may be paid to an Officer, as decided by majority vote of the Officers.

Officers for each year, with a term of office of one year, will be elected at a meeting of the Officers each year on or about the 10th day of June of each year.

Meetings.

The Officers shall convene at least once a year and whenever else and in a manner they deem necessary to conduct business, either at the principle office, or any other place, or by any communication media felt appropriate by the Officers. Either (a) two or more of the principal Officers, or (b) Sixty percent (rounded to the nearest full percent) of all Offices (not Officers) must be present for a quorum to be declared. Each Officer has one equal vote, no matter how many Offices he/she holds.

The Membership.

Applicants will be admitted to membership solely upon the discretion of the Officers. Upon the Officers' decision, the prospective Member will be admitted. The admitted Member will receive a personalized certificate of membership suitable for framing. Membership will commence upon issuance of the certificate.

If Full Society Membership is based on one of the descendant categories of membership, then, the applicant's lineage details as given by the applicant will be accepted on faith, if they are complete and connected, unless they appear illogical. The lineage must be accompanied by the applicant's best (sufficient but not exhaustive) documentation for the birth events and relationships submitted. Published sources are preferred, but family sources are acceptable. Reproductions of documentary evidence may be requested at the discretion of the officers in some cases. Any and all evidence, sources and argument the applicant can provide on his/her 17th and 18th century New England ancestors are requested. Lineages must be complete and without gaps for issuance of a certificate naming the ancestor of the member.

Applicants for Full Society Membership must state in their application that:

1. The application is submitted as true to the best of applicant=s knowledge; and

2. The applicant is not a convicted felon or dishonorably discharged from military service.

Membership fees for various categories and dates of membership will be set, and may be changed from time to time, by the Officers. Subscription to the Society' publications will be separate fees . Subscriptions are voluntary , and at a subscription fee determined by the Officers. Should annual dues be needed by the Society to maintain its purposes, the Officers shall set annual dues from time to time to maintain the status of a member as an active member.

Full Society Membership is permanent, regardless of the status of the members as active or non-active, but membership is non-hereditary and non-transferable. Any other class of Membership will renew annually, but subject to the discretionary decision of the Officers to terminate by non-renewal any Membership other than Full Society Membership.

A Member may not be expelled from the Society, except by unanimous vote of the Officers for one of the five following causes:

1. evidence of the Member's deliberate falsification of his/ her application.

2. the Member's conviction of a felony.

3. the Member's dishonorable discharge from the US military service.

4. the Member's continued and deliberate harassment of the Officers (as in the abuse of the rights to petition and to demand financial reports) to the extent that Society business is impeded. Any such dismissal is open for the term of one year thereafter to a single appeal to a majority vote of the full membership, to be handled in the manner of a petition as described below.

5. The Member's misuse of Membership to the extent that Society business is impeded or the Society is exposed to public harassment. Any such dismissal is open for the term of one year thereafter to a single appeal to a majority vote of the full membership, to be handled in the manner of a petition as described below.

6. Failure to pay membership dues.

Changes to these bylaws.

These bylaws may be amended:

1. when, after a meeting of the Officers, the Officers shall agree unanimously to the change, and shall submit the said change to a vote of the full membership. Or,

2. upon a petition of the Members. A petition may be initiated by any Member, and the Officers are bound to notify all of the Members (whose addresses are held in confidentiality), giving an accurate copy of the petition along with the Officers' position on the proposal. Any one Member may not initiate or participate in the initiation of more than one petition per calendar year. Within six weeks of the receipt of said initial petition, the proposal must be duly and completely distributed by the Officers for a vote of the full active membership, with a due and diligent attempt to obtain the votes of all Members. The tally of said vote will be taken within three months of the receipt by the Officers of the said initial petition. The Officers will publish the results in an appropriate manner, which may consist of a posting on an Internet site of the Society.

Members must individually sign and post by mail their positions to the Society when voting on a change in the Society bylaws or on a petition. No petition initiation by proxy or vote by proxy will be recognized. A quorum of Members for any vote on a change in the bylaws will be 30% of the full active membership. Should less than 30% respond, no change in these bylaws will be made, regardless of the majority vote of those voting.

After a two-thirds majority approval by a quorum of the membership, notwithstanding any objections of the Officers, the changes duly petitioned will be written into this Charter and will take effect immediately.

Inactive Members.

A Member will be considered inactive when

1. for any reason the Member voluntarily leaves the Society, and notifies the Officers to that effect, or

2. the officers find that the Member cannot be reached by either US mail or e-mail after due and diligent attempts to do so.

3. after a reasonable time the Member has failed to pay any dues established by the Society as dues to maintain active status.

Duties of Members.

Members have the duty to occasionally inform the Society of all substantial new information they discover about their 16th , 17th , or 18th century ancestors (except if such information is obviously well known, and published,) Especially important to the Society is the bibliography of sources, original 17th century documents, and results of research done in original sources in England or New England.

Rights of Members.

Members, should they disagree with the bylaws of the Society or the work or position of the Society, have a right to petition the Society's Officers for a change. Members have a right to request from the Treasurer an accounting of the Society's finances. Living Members have a right to privacy. While a living Member's lineage might be published in the publications of the Society, due care will exercised to provide that no other information about living Members, including their addresses, will ever be disclosed by the Society to anyone, other than officer even to other Members, except by the Member's permission or by Court Order. A Member's or public statement of his/her membership is implied permission for the Officers to disclose the fact of membership.

NOTE: THIS WEB SITE COPY OF THE CHARTER AND BYLAWS IS APPROXIMATE. THE ORIGINAL CHARTER, BYLAWS, AND AMENDMENTS MAY BE DIFFERENT IN WORDING AND MAY HAVE DIFFERENT FORMATTING, SECTION NUMBERS, OR OTHER TYPOGRAPHICAL DIFFERENCES. ALSO THIS WEB SITE MAY NOT HAVE ALL AMENDMENTS AS THEY MAY EXIST FROM TIME TO TIME.