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Outside of the Galleries of the House of Representatives During the Passage of the Civil Rights Bill

Page from Harper’s Weekly, April 28, 1866, with hand-colored vignettes, showing White and Black men and children celebrating with hats off, another showing White women celebrating and waving their handkerchiefs, captioned “Outside of the Galleries of the House of Representatives During the Passage of the Civil Rights Bill.” The page also has an article and print titled, “Paris Fashions for April.”/tiles/collection/5/5646.xml
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Page from Harper’s Weekly, April 28, 1866, with hand-colored vignettes, showing White and Black men and children celebrating with hats off, another showing White women celebrating and waving their handkerchiefs, captioned “Outside of the Galleries of the House of Representatives During the Passage of the Civil Rights Bill.” The page also has an article and print titled, “Paris Fashions for April.”
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Date

1866-04-28

Publication

Harper's Weekly

Publisher

Harper & Brothers

Dimensions

15 13/16 x 10 13/16 in. (40.2 x 27.5 cm)

Accession Number

2007.336.002

Credit Line

Collection of the U.S. House of Representatives

Object Details

This print shows the delight of women reformers, newly enfranchised African Americans, and military veterans at the passage of the first civil rights bill in April 1866. The House overrode President Andrew Johnson’s veto of the Civil Rights Bill of 1866 with near unanimous Republican support, 122 to 41, marking the first time Congress passed civil rights legislation. The bill defined all persons born in the United States (except Native Americans) as natural American citizens. The legislation granted all citizens the right to enjoy “full and equal benefit of all laws and proceedings for the security of person and property.” The galleries of the House had been open to African Americans at least as early as 1864, following a ban on their presence that began in 1827.

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Office of Art & Archives, Office of the Clerk: art@mail.house.gov, archives@mail.house.gov