The LaGrange chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution awarded its first scholarship Tuesday to Alex Hughes at Bellevue Historic Home. The $500 scholarship was intended for graduate and undergraduate students studying history, library sciences or genealogy, according to LaGrange DAR chapter regent Kathren Fogg.

“We’ve been planning it for a while and saving up so we could do a scholarship,” Fogg said.

“We’re planning on doing one annually.”

The DAR is committed to education, patriotism and historic preservation.

Hughes, the records manager for the Troup County Archives, is attending the University of Alabama for a master’s degree in library and information science. Hughes said he is currently completing his first year of the two-year program.

Hughes said he wrote his essay for the scholarship on Marquis de Lafayette after participating in the Lafayette Alliance. Hughes said he was made aware of the alliance when its president, Richard Ingram, told the archives about how people didn’t recognize Lafayette statue in downtown.

“We agreed that Lafayette was clearly standing in the middle of town and needs to be understood. We and asked different people in town if they knew who the man in the square was,” Hughes said. “It was really disheartening to hear the answers they gave, so the Lafayette Alliance set about to educate.”

Fogg said Hughes’ application was picked out of ten other applicants.

“Alex’s was the only one we got back that was going into this field,” Fogg said.

Fogg said DAR hopes to do more fundraising next year.

For more information on the LaGrange chapter of the DAR, visit lagrange.georgiastatedar.org.