A Sunday story for a Sunday...I've previously posted about the World's Columbian Exposition and its battles over Sunday openings, but I wanted to add a bit to the story. You can read the original story here: (1892-93 World's Columbian Exposition - Sunday Controversy.On April 25, 1890 an Act was signed into law that was "to provide for celebrating the four hundredth anniversary of the discovery of America by Christopher Columbus by holding an international exhibition of arts, industries, manufactures, and the product of the soil, mine, and sea in the city of Chicago, in the State of Illinois."
The Act established the World's Columbian Commission, officially selected Chicago, Illinois as the host city for the Exposition and appropriated more than $600,000 to be used for the US Government Building(s), the US exhibit at the Exposition, the admission/import of foreign goods for the Exposition and other purposes. The Act set a maximum financial liability for the US Government at $1.5 million. The Act did not, however, include any provision for souvenir coins or make reference to Sunday closings of the Exposition.
In the months that followed, debates over the potential for the Sunday opening of the Exposition raged. Many religious groups opposed the Exposition being open on Sunday, arguing that the Sabbath (Sunday) should be dedicated to religious observances and rest vs. being another day fueled by commercialism and greed. Many trade organizations took an opposing view, and supported the Exposition being open on Sunday as, for many workers, it would be the only day on which they could visit and enjoy the Exposition due to the common six-day work week of the time; it was also common for a workday to be 10 hours long.
Congress received hundreds of petitions from groups that supported one side of the debate or the other.
Multiple bills/resolutions were introduced in the Senate and House of Representatives that would have made Sunday Exposition openings legal provided "suitable regulations and restrictions for the preservation of public order" were followed. None of these bills/resolutions were approved, however.
Things took a turn in August 1892. On August 5th, a bill "to aid in carrying out the act of Congress approved April twenty-fifth, eighteen hundred and ninety, entitled 'an act to provide for celebrating the four hundredth anniversary of the discovery of America by Christopher Columbus, by holding an international exposition of arts, industries, manufactures, and products of the soil, mine, and sea, in the city of Chicago, in the State of Illinois,' and appropriating money therefor." was signed into law by US President Benjamin Harrison.
The bill/Act included a provision for a souvenir half dollar:
"there shall be coined at the mints of the United States silver half-dollars of the legal weight and fineness, not to exceed five million pieces, to be known as the Columbian half-dollar, struck in commemoration of the World's Columbian Exposition, the devices and designs upon which shall be prescribed by the Director- of the Mint, with the approval of the Secretary of the Treasury; and said
silver coins shall be manufactured from uncurrent subsidiary silver coins now in the Treasury, and all provisions of law relative to the coinage, legal-tender quality, and redemption of the present subsidiary silver coins shall be applicable to the coins issued under this act, and when so recoined there is hereby appropriated from the Treasury the said five millions of souvenir half dollars, and the Secretary of the Treasury is authorized to pay the same to the World's Columbian Exposition..."
Also included in the Act was the following provision:
"That it is hereby declared that all appropriations herein made for, or pertaining to, the World's Columbian Exposition are made upon the condition that the said Exposition shall not be opened to the public on the first day of the week, commonly called Sunday; and if said appropriations be accepted by the corporation of the State of Illinois, known as the World's Columbian Exposition, upon that condition, it shall be, and it is hereby, made the duty of the World's Columbian Commission, created by the Act of Congress of April twenty-fifth, eighteen hundred and ninety, to make such rules or modifications of the rules of said corporation as shall require the closing of the Exposition on the said first day of the week commonly called Sunday."
So, in one brief Act, the US Congress created the first authorized US souvenir/commemorative coin, and established what appears to have been the first national "Blue Law" (i.e., a restriction on certain activities such as shopping, specific leisure/entertainment activities, alcohol sales, etc. on a specific day - typically Sunday). "Blue Laws" are most often defined locally or at the State level vs. National law.
While the US Constitution/Bill of Rights established a separation of church and state - "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion." - Congress, in 1892, had clearly yielded to religious pressures when making its Exposition coin-based appropriation.
For its part, the World's Columbian Exposition company, accepted the terms by accepting the souvenir coins. At the same time, the Company understood the economic value of keeping the Exposition open seven days a week.
In January 1893, Congress considered using economic pressure to force the Exposition to keep its gates closed on Sundays. Joint Resolutions were introduced in the Senate and House of Representatives that sought to "recover back from the said World's Columbian Exposition the nominal par value of all such half-dollar coins so paid to said corporation and cover the same into the Treasury" if it did not close on Sundays.
Neither Resolution progressed, however.
Per Congress' guidelines, the Exposition was initially closed on Sunday. When potential Fairgoers showed up at the Exposition gates on the first Sunday following the Exposition's opening and found the gates to be locked and the Exposition closed, things turned ugly. It did not go over well with many of those who planned on attending the Exposition and so tempers flared and property destruction ensued; the damage to property extended beyond that of the Exposition gates, etc. to local, private property in the area.
Subsequently, the Exposition Company, in defiance to the US Government, opened the Exposition on Sundays. It wanted to make the Exposition available to the largest number of people - many people worked six days a week at the time, and Sunday was their only day off.
As a result, the Exposition Company and the US Government soon found themselves in Court in an attempt to adjudicate the matter. A central issue was the fact that, technically, the Federal Government had no jurisdiction over the Exposition - it was operating under the laws of the State of Illinois - and the Government's attempts at enforcing the closing of the Exposition on Sunday were therefore challenged. Having the Exposition open on Sunday was not an issue for Chicago or Illinois.
A contemporary article in the
Baltimore Sun called the controversy an "embarrassment" and expressed doubts as to whether a binding decision could be made by the courts while the Exposition was still open. The Court quickly realized the same, and, as such, issued no final ruling at the time. As a result, the Exposition was allowed to continue opening on Sunday by default. The US Government responded by closing its exhibits on Sunday - its actions were supported by Great Britain and France who also closed all or some of their exhibits. The exhibit closures appear to have contributed to lower Sunday attendance at the Exposition vs. other days of the week.
Did the "Sunday Battle" impact coin sales? (i.e., Did Fairgoers boycott the coins in response to the Government's policy?) IMO, any impact that it might have had was small, I think selling the coins at twice their face value presented more of an issue at the time.
1892 World's Columbian Exposition Half Dollar
For more of my topics on commemorative coins and medals, including more on the Columbian half dollar, see:
Commems Collection.
Posted 06/01/2025 5:04 pm
