Utah's 'Captain McGregor' serves his country in a unique way, with a unique uniform

SALT LAKE CITY — Doug McGregor was 48 years old when America's past reached out and introduced itself.

He was working on his family's genealogy in the summer of 2006 when he came upon a notation that one of his ancestors fought in the Revolutionary War.

Intrigued, he began digging for more information — a search that brought him into contact with an organization called the Sons of the American Revolution.

The genealogists at SAR were able to definitively verify that John Young, Doug's great-great-great-great-great (that's five greats) grandfather, indeed wore the red, white and blue livery of George Washington's Continental Army. John joined in 1780 in Massachusetts when he was 17 years old. (Doug's maternal lineage traces through Louisa, one of John's daughters; John Young also had a son, Brigham, who later settled in Utah.)

To this point in his life, Doug had always considered himself a patriotic American. But now, it was as if a portal had opened, pouring in the spirit of 1776. He promptly joined the Sons of the American Revolution (now that he knew he qualified for membership) and immersed himself in the history of what John Young and his fellow soldiers two and a half centuries ago were fighting for.

"This supercharged me to appreciate the principles that this country is founded on," he says. "I started reading everything I could find on the subject."

The heightened awareness of what made, and makes, America great, and the importance of fighting for it sparked in Doug a personal lament that he hadn't served in the military as a young man.

"On Veterans Day and other occasions, I found myself envying men and women in uniform who took advantage of that opportunity, and were willing to fight for our liberty," he says. "It felt like it was such a shame that I never made the decision to do that."

So when the Utah chapter of the Sons of the American Revolution decided to form a color guard in 2011 — recruiting members who would dress up in colonial attire and present the American flag in various ceremonies around the state — Doug saw his chance to be a man in uniform.

He was measured for clothes tailored as closely as possible to authentic Continental Army specifications, complete with a blue wool tunic with red trim, white wool breeches, long cotton socks, a tricorn hat, buttons emblazoned with USA and, as an added touch, Ben Franklin-style bifocals.

As "Captain McGregor," he has proudly worn this uniform to hundreds of events, large and small, ever since. On June 27, he was front and center in full Continental Army regalia to present the flag — and give a short speech — at a youth Patriot Camp at Murray Park.

"Now, I feel like I am wearing a uniform, in my own way," said the 68-year-old after the flag ceremony was over, "and I feel like I'm serving my country by helping my fellow citizens understand how important and essential our American principles are. I'm fighting for truth, justice and the American way."

He and his alter ego are willing to go just about anywhere to spread the word, especially when young people are involved.

"If someone's going to let me come in and talk to the kids and teach them about unalienable rights, about self-government, about the importance of being self-reliant, about what was going on in the American Revolution, man, I'm thrilled to do it."

And for the record, even though he's heard it hundreds, if not thousands, of times over the past couple of decades, he insists he has never gotten tired of "The Star-Spangled Banner."

"Oh, it never gets old, I love it every time I hear it," he says. "'The rockets' red glare, the bombs bursting in air, gave proof through the night that our flag was still there' — I resonate with that. That's what you and I have to do, we have to make sure that the flag, and what it represents, what it symbolizes, will always be there. That is the responsibility of every true American."

Life will get even busier for Doug in the coming year. He is one of 21 people chosen by Gov. Spencer Cox to serve on Utah's "America250" commission. The group is in charge of organizing events to celebrate America's 250th birthday on July 4, 2026. To learn more, go to america250.utah.gov.

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