April 22, 1878: The 1st White House Easter Egg Roll

Joe and Jill Biden, and the Easter Bunny, presiding, April 18, 2022.

No, this is not the original in 1878. Joe's not that old.

April 22, 1878: The 1st White House Easter Egg Roll is held, on the South Lawn.

In Christianity, for the celebration of Eastertide, Easter eggs symbolize the empty tomb of Jesus. Additionally, eggs carry a Trinitarian significance, with shell, yolk, and albumen being three parts of one egg. During Lent, eggs are among the foods that are traditionally abstained from. After the 40-day Lenten season concludes and Eastertide begins, eggs may be consumed again, giving rise to various traditions such as the rolling of hard-boiled eggs, usually decorated. This also symbolizes the angel rolling away the stone at the entrance of the tomb.

According to tradition, Dolley Madison, wife of President James Madison, began the event in 1814. Hundreds of children brought their decorated eggs to join in games. Children rolled eggs on Easter Monday at the Capitol, the White House, and other parks and open spaces in Washington.

In 1876, shortly after a particularly rambunctious Easter egg roll destroyed much of the lawn at the Capitol, Congress passed a law making it illegal to use the Capitol complex as a children's playground. Heavy rain prevented much egg rolling in 1877, so the ban was not tested until 1878.

At the request of a number of children, including his own, then President Rutherford B. Hayes and his wife Lucy Hayes brought the event to the White House lawn in 1878. From that year on, the Egg Roll would be an annual and popular White House event, with a few exceptions:

* 1917: Moved to the Washington Monument.

* 1918, 1919 and 1920: Canceled due to food shortages, with the addition reason in 1919 of the Spanish Flu epidemic.

* 1942 through 1952: With the U.S. entering World War II, President Franklin D. Roosevelt put several traditions on hold, including 2 Spring traditions associated with the Presidency: The Easter Egg Roll and the ceremonial first ball to open the baseball season. The 1942 Easter Egg Roll was moved to the Capitol West Lawn.

The next 3 editions were canceled, to save the eggs for the armed force. The 2 after that were canceled, to save the eggs for the Marshall Plan in its rebuilding of Western Europe. The renovation of the White House made it the South Lawn unavailable from 1948 to 1952.

President Dwight D. Eisenhower restored the tradition in 1953, and First Lady Mamie Eisenhower noticed that no black children were participating. The District of Columbia was still racially segregated. She ordered that the Roll be opened to black children, and the 1954 edition, and all since, have been.

* 2020 and 2021: Canceled due to COVID-19 restrictions. It was resumed in 2022.

The President and the First Lady usually attend, along with someone wearing an Easter Bunny costume. With a crowd usually estimated at around 30,000, it is the most-attended annual White House event, surpassing the lighting of the National Christmas Tree

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April 22, 1878, as the day after Easter, was a Monday. The only sport in season in America at the time was baseball, and no games were scheduled for the day.