© 2005 All Rights Reserved. Do not distribute or repurpose this work without written permission from the copyright holder(s).
Printed from https://www.damninteresting.com/retired/blue-laws/
This article is marked as 'retired'. The information here may be out of date, incomplete, and/or incorrect.
The Puritans were exiled from Europe and settled in America in the 17
Some are still on the books.
Most of these laws have set root in the New England area, and include such things as:
- Sabbath Regulations. Typically, all forms of trade or commerce were outlawed on Sundays. No public entertainment or meetings were permitted, except of course for church services, which often included two-hour services in the morning and the afternoon. Travel on Sunday was banned, except for emergencies. Violators were subject to fines imposed by civil authorities. Some went so far as to limit the number of steps a person could take in a day; excess walking was not resting as one should on the sabbath.
- Family Relationships. Efforts were made in many communities to provide social stability through legislation. Husbands and wives were required to live together to keep families intact. Parents risked losing their children if it were found that they were being poorly educated. The Puritans placed a heavy emphasis on the ability to read and understand the Bible, so great effort was expended to educate the community.
- Sumptuary Laws. Many New England towns passed laws intended to prevent excesses in the areas of clothing and food consumption. Motivations in these instances were somewhat mixed. Part of the explanation can be found in the desire to prevent excessive human behavior. However, there was also an element of trying to keep people in their proper social stations. Fines were imposed on people on the lower rungs of society who dressed in silk or wore silver buckles on their shoes—perfectly acceptable practices for the upper classes.
- Public Behavior. Community members found guilty of drunkenness, idleness or gossiping were made the targets of public ridicule during their confinement in the stocks or pillory. No celebrations of Christmas, other holidays or church weddings were permitted since those events were not sanctioned in the Bible. Public displays of affection between the sexes, even between husband and wife, were prohibited.
And some highlights:
- No one shall be a freeman, or give a vote, unless he be converted, and a member in full communion of one of the Churches allowed in this Dominion.
- If any person turns Quaker, he shall be banished, and not suffered to return but upon pain of death.
- No one shall travel, cook victuals, make beds, sweep house, cut hair, or shave, on the Sabbath day.
- No woman shall kiss her child on the Sabbath or fasting-day.
- A person accused of trespass in the night shall be judged guilty, unless he clear himself by his oath.
This year the Whole Foods supermarket chain in Massachusetts wanted to open on Thanksgiving Day in order to cater to last minute and poor planning celebrators, but they were forbidden to do so but a remaining “Blue Law”.
The puritans are still making our life hard, and the Europeans are still laughing at us for taking them.
© 2005 All Rights Reserved. Do not distribute or repurpose this work without written permission from the copyright holder(s).
Printed from https://www.damninteresting.com/retired/blue-laws/
Since you enjoyed our work enough to print it out, and read it clear to the end, would you consider donating a few dollars at https://www.damninteresting.com/donate ?
An interesting fact that I remember reading about was that the Puritans, at one point, had outlawed Christmas. They repealed this law due to the inconceivable notion that anyone would actually celebrate it. However, it does not look all that repealed according to the Blue Laws…
Regardless, it just goes to show that you never know what might catch on.
Am I supposed to care that the Europeans are laughing? Sorry, I couldn’t care less. I think a sensible evaluation of the evolutiion of American laws would be more profitable than just making fun of the Puritans. After being persecuted and oppressed in Europe maybe they were somewhat overboard when they had control. I guess you had to be there to understand. Is it significant that Mass. is now possibly the most liberal part of the U.S.?
Are you suggesting that we do away with compulsary education in the United States? For in reality, as you state, compulsary education can be traced back to these puritan “blue laws”. It’s interesting to think about the fact that many of our modernlaws that we take for granted are merely a “promotion of the common morality” just as these puritan laws were then. Laws in America and elsewhere tend to never strictly involve a protection of personal liberties but often stray into promoting personal morality through legislation. You had the Puritans then, and now you have the modern puritans: those who promote legislating anti smoking laws and speed limits and parking tickets and seat belt laws.
I had a relative named Melchior that lived in Switzerland who dared to join the Anabaptists. What a massive mistake! He was violently driven out of his town and into Germany. He had a son who was also called Melchior. He escaped the remaining persecutions in his hometown and moved to the New World. He settled in a place later to be named Lancaster County, in the state of Pennsylvania. But it was hundreds of years ago! Just remember, it’s easy to judge those not of our time and those we consider “others.” Since everyone has an axe to grind, we have to give others the benefit of the doubt.
I lived in Conshohocken (Khan’-Show-Hock’-En) from age 9-40. They used to have Blue Laws, I don’t know if they removed them or just ignore them now. (It was the No Business Open on Sunday Law.) Anyway, it was a HUGE deal when a McDonalds opened in West Conshohocken just over the Conshohocken Bridge and off the Schuylkill (if you can’t say or spell it try driving it) Expressway. THEN a PIZZA Shop, Tony and Joe’s, opened right on the main street of Conshohocken (Fayette Street) and to this day is my favorite pizza.
Anyway, this 1 square mile of a Borough grew due to pretty good foresight of it’s Mayors and Councel Members from long ago; mostly Italian, Polish, German, Irish immigrants. They somehow lured businesses in (maybe lower taxes or whatever) and there are more Gas Stations, Funeral Homes, Churches and Bars in this square mile than you can believe. In turn, over the Decades, many, many businesses and Corporations moved in. Doctors, Lawyers, Major Consulting Firms. Somehow Conshohocken has become THE place to live. So four years ago we sold our house and bought a nice Condo in LaFayette Hill. (LaFayette Hill is predominantly Jewish, so we expected the residents to also be Jewish. I never lived near so many Italians in my LIFE and I am Italian and have a huge Italian family. Everybody is always screaming!)
Anyway, Conshohocken is now THE place to build and live. People who owned land here are now millionares; business offices and hotels are going up everywhere. Just a 1/2 hour from Philly, 15 minutes from one major Mall and 20 from another, 3 major grocery chains within the square mile, it’s own free bus service for Elderly and disabled and $1-$2 for others to take you to any of these areas and more, several parks and recreation centers, restaurants and steak/hoagie (that’s right, I said HOAGIE; and Zeps) Hair Salons, I can’t even count the number of Car Dealerships, The new Metroplex (you know, the Basic Boarders Book Store, Target, Old Navy, Lowes, Best Buy and so on) where Half.com was founded and sold to Ebay and they are still building. Not just businesses but homes in any slip of ground they can. Get this, four particular small town homes have a view of a gas station and sell for $300,000 each and they were snatched up because afterall, they are just across from the bike trail that runs for miles into Valley Forge or Philadelphia (it is right behind the gas station) and President Bush (and Mrs. Clinton when First Lady) come to visit every so often as a prime example of how to build up a town of small businesses and major corporations while maintaining avenue after avenue of homes. And yes, there are two stops for the trains to take people to Philly or Norristown to work.
Honestly, this place was the pitts to grow up in; now it is all the rage. I knew Conshohocken had really made it when it was featured in Philadelphia Magazine as the new hottest place to go; they featured the New Strip Club as one of it’s “places to go.” Now, if they can only build a Dog Park, all would be well.
I’m sorry, what was the topic? Oh. Blue Laws. Good thing they were repealed or are ignored because this place is “all that.”
How did Conshohocken get it’s name? Three names were placed in a hat. I can’t remember the other two, but they were more “normal, spellable and pronounceable.” Conshohocken was pulled out; it means Pleasant Valley in Native American.
Suffice to say, most of the new Businesses and Business Centers go by “Pleasant Valley.”
By the way, I wrote a journal on Philly. Hopefully I am posting this link correctly.
http://journals.aol.com/chatcruzin82361/BrotherlyLove
If it does not work I will post again.
rk_cr said: “An interesting fact that I remember reading about was that the Puritans, at one point, had outlawed Christmas. They repealed this law due to the inconceivable notion that anyone would actually celebrate it. However, it does not look all that repealed according to the Blue Laws…
Regardless, it just goes to show that you never know what might catch on.”
A simple search on Wiki or even a look at the Encyclopaedia Britannica will show the roots of Christmas. It’s not that far fetched of an idea to get rid of it. It’s just that it’s so ingrained in society now (and such a cash cow) that no one dares oppose it.
I live in Massachusetts and I go to school in Connecticut. Probably the worst thing about the blue laws is buying some hooch. It was recently changed, but while I was growing up, trying to buy alcohol on sunday…. didnt happen. Then it was extended to 1.p.m. NOW.. I can buy beer until 9 but only hard liquor till 8 on sunday. I hate both these states… and I hate them even more due to the fact that my pistol permit is basically useless. The gun laws in Massachusetts are as queer as a 3 dollar bill. The blue laws are no exception.
I lived in the Boston area for a few years in the late 1960s and, coming from California, found the Blue Laws to be shocking. Bars closed at midnight on Saturday…at 12:01 it was Sunday, after all. Then, I discovered that although some of the small neighborhood markets were open for a few hours on Sunday, they were restricted as to what they could sell: necessities like bread and milk were OK, but frivolities like toothpaste were not! Eventually I moved back to California and forgot about the Blue Laws…and then I moved to South Africa.
It’s a little schizophrenic here…the bars in Cape Town can stay open all night (and many do!) and serve booze by-the-drink until they close, but you cannot buy bottled liquor, beer, or wine after 5 pm on Saturdays or 8 pm on weekdays or at any time on Sundays. Wine can be sold in supermarkets, but beer and spirits only in liquor stores. The drinking age is 18 (as is the minimum age to get a driver’s license), although the age to buy tobacco products is 16. This, despite the fact that the Afrikaaners and the Dutch Reform Church are no longer in control of the government. And yet, if you mention the “Blue Laws” to a South African, they have no idea what you are talking about and laugh at the absurdity of them when you explain!
Go figger!
Eh, I grew up in a methodist town in the UK, and they didn’t allow any drinking at all (in the past, I mean).
All the pubs were built just outside the town, on one short road. Damn great for pub crawls – six pubs lined up and awaiting the challenge! My side of town was mostly churches, though.
What a double edged sword. I would like the return of some blue laws.
1) Can’t swear around kids or people who don’t want to hear it
2) can’t smoke around children or people who don’t want to be smoked on
3) Adultary should be punishable by law (some states have laws but are mostly ignored)
4) Fornication (at any age) should be have consequences including making one immediately emancipated from one’s parents (for teenagers) and enrollment in a tax that pays for medical costs of STD’s and unwanted pregnancy.
etc.
But I wouldn’t want to be subjected to someone else’s blue laws….some religions are serously crazy!
kthxbye
Who cares if Europeans are laughing? Why is it quite often that the value of one society is based or judge as to how it’s compared to another?