The activity was once so scandalous, and spun so far out of control, that an angry Congress outlawed it on their turf
The White House Easter Egg Roll is upon us again, with its usual light-hearted fanfare and wholesome traditions. There will be bunny costumes, live music performances and senior government officials reading from picture books. And most of all, there will be lots and lots of children, with crowds expected to number up to 30,000. According to Smithsonian, it’s the largest annual White House event.
Doing so on the U.S. government’s grass dates back to the 1870s, when extensions of the Capitol’s north and south wings were nearing completion and the western lawn was used for little more than construction staging. The building’s marble terrace did not yet exist, and Congress had just recently employed the consulting services of a young landscape architect by the name of Frederick Law Olmsted to beautify the area.
describing the Capitol grounds as “thronged with lads and lassies, aye, and many older heads congregated to witness the pranks and capers of the boys and girls in rolling the eggs from the crest of the hill to the lawn below.” Poorly timed morning rainfall that year “had the effect of dampening the grass somewhat,” but could not deter the stampede of tiny feet sprinting across the soggy lawns.
Some of Morrill’s colleagues spoke up in favor of the children, noting that “they are generally from a class of citizens who have little opportunity for enjoying themselves.” Indeed, the annual event was celebrated by newspapers as “the festival of the poor,” for being open to all races and classes. The chairman was adamant, however, about kicking the kids off the Congressional backyard.
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