111th Congress, 2nd Session
Subjects – Holidays
The annual Easter egg roll at the Capitol
April 21, 1876
On this date, the House of Representatives passed the Turf Protection Law, which effectively ended the traditional Easter Monday egg roll at the Capitol. Local schools closed each year on the day after Easter to allow children “to ramble at will on the fresh green grass” at the Capitol.
A 19th-century Halloween prank in the Capitol
October 31, 1885
On this date, a prank played on a new Capitol Police Officer led to the firing of gun shots in Statuary Hall.
The first Labor Day
June 28, 1894
On this date, President Grover Cleveland signed S. 730 into law declaring Labor Day as a national holiday. Since 1883, Labor Day had been celebrated at the local and state level.
The first national celebration of Mother’s Day
May 11, 1913
On this date, the Members of the House of Representatives wore white carnations to honor American mothers in the first capital observance of Mother’s Day.
The origins of the Capitol Christmas tree
December 24, 1913
On this date, thousands of people flocked to the U.S. Capitol to celebrate Washington’s first “community Christmas.”
The Thanksgiving holiday
November 28, 1940
The establishing of the last Thursday of November as the legal holiday for Thanksgiving.
The House hosts its first Flag Day ceremony
June 14, 1955
On this date, the House hosted what was billed as its first all-out ceremony in the chamber to honor the flag of the United States.
A rare Christmas Eve session
December 24, 1963
On this date, the House of Representatives capped off one of the longest continuous sessions in congressional history on the eve of a national holiday.
The Veterans Day (Armistice Day) holiday
November 11, 1978
On this date, the nation returned to celebrating Veterans Day (Armistice Day) on November 11.
The origins of the St. Patrick’s Day Luncheon
March 17, 1983
Speaker Thomas P. “Tip” O’Neill of Massachusetts hosted the first St. Patrick’s Day lunch.
The creation of the Martin Luther King Jr. Holiday
November 02, 1983
President Ronald W. Reagan signed into law a bill to create a national holiday to honor Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
