Labor Day marks the anniversary of a landmark free speech case that took place in Northeast Missouri. Father John Cummings was arrested after saying Mass on September 3rd 1865 at St. Joseph Catholic Church in Louisiana. He was charged with failing to take the state’s loyalty oath that was enacted in the wake of the Civil War.

The Missouri Supreme Court sided with prosecutors, but the United States Supreme Court ruled in favor of Father Cummings. Writing for the narrow 5 to 4 majority, Justice Stephen Field called the oath “objectionable” and said it subverted fundamental rights granted in the Constitution.

Father Cummings also ministered at St. Stephen’s parish south of Monroe City before falling ill in 1870. He died three years later at age 33 and is buried in St. Louis.However, the subject is still creating controversy. At least 15 states still have some form of loyalty oaths. Though optional since the 1970s, Illinois asks some political candidates to declare they are not members of the Communist Party when they seek office.