In the early days of
Edgerton, Wisconsin, it was common practice for public school teachers to read aloud to their students from the
King James Bible. In 1886,
Roman Catholic parents protested about that to the school board, citing their belief that the
Douay version of the Bible was the only correct translation for their children. After failing to convince the school board to end the practice, the parents— and —took their case to court. In November 1888, the circuit court judge, John R. Bennett, decided that the readings were not sectarian because both translations were of the same work. The parents then appealed the decision to the
Wisconsin Supreme Court. In
State ex rel Weiss v. District Board 76 Wis. 177 (1890), 3, otherwise known as the Edgerton Bible Case, the justices overruled the circuit court's decision by concluding that it illegally united the functions of church and state. In 1963, the
United States Supreme Court banned government-sponsored compulsory prayer from public schools (see
Abington School District v. Schempp), and Justice
William Brennan Jr. cited the Edgerton Bible case in his decision. ==References==