Wisconsin courts

1890 - Bible Prohibited from Wisconsin Schools
On this date a Rock County circuit court decision which had permitted the Bible to be read in classrooms was overturned by the Wisconsin Supreme Court. In 1889 a group of Edgerton citizens brought suit against their school board for allowing area teachers to read the Bible in class. They contested the teacher's use of the Douay version which, they claimed, differed materially from the King James translation. The case was tried in the circuit court of Rock County. The judge denied the petition and ruled that "reading the Bible was not sectarian and was, therefore, lawful and proper." The case was appealed to the Supreme Court which handed down a decision that reversed the circuit court and held "the use of any version of the Bible as textbook in the public schools" violated the Constitution. [Source: Wis. Court System, "Famous Cases of the Supreme Court"]

Wisconsin Historical Society

Seems we have always been used to be a little ahead of the curve when it comes to common sense.