In 1958, President Dwight D. Eisenhower proclaimed May 1 as “Law Day.” Since then, governments from the federal to the municipal levels have held annual observances to remind the public of the legal system’s role in the life of our nation.  This year, the American Bar Association is using Law Day to bring attention to the sesquicentennial of the ratification of the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution—defining national citizenship and forbidding states from restricting basic rights—upcoming in 2018.

For Social Law’s celebration of Law Day, we’ve put together a selection of books on American legal history and the background and contributions of the Fourteenth Amendment in securing our liberties.

Here are Law Day news stories and photos from a collection by the ABA in 1972, including some from Massachusetts.

The Boston Globe, May 2, 1972
The Arizona Republic, April 29, 1972
The North Adams Mass Transcript, May 2, 1972
The Boston Herald Traveler, April 30, 1972