Program, Sesquicentennial Celebration of the Supreme Court of the United States, City of Washington, February 1, 1940

This program commemorates the sesquicentennial anniversary of the United States Supreme Court. The program’s cover features the Exchange Building in New York City, site of the Court’s first meeting on February 1, 1790. The Supreme Court Building, completed in 1935, also appears on the program’s cover, along with portraits of first Chief Justice John Jay and then-current Chief Justice Charles E. Hughes. The program’s interior pages include the seal of the nation’s highest court and short biographical sketches for every justice who had served during the court's 150-year history.

The Supreme Court's anniversary observance began at 8:30 a.m. on February 1, 1940, with a congressional breakfast in the Senate restaurant attended by the Senate and House Judiciary Committee members. At 11:45 a.m., the sergeants at arms of both houses escorted the ten-member Joint Committee for the Sesquicentennial into the courtroom of the Supreme Court Building to witness the justices take the bench at noon and mark the 150th anniversary of the Court’s first session.