On this day, January 11, 1791, a group of concerned Philadelphians met to do something about education. Among them was Bishop William White, doctors Benjamin Rush and William Currie, the Quaker Joseph Sharpless, two Quaker merchants, Thomas Pym Cope and Thomas Mendenhall and a Catholic publisher, Matthew Carey.
Sunday, said the men, ought to be devoted to religious improvement, but instead it was being used for wicked purposes. In their opinion, "the establishment of first-day or Sunday schools in this city would be of essential advantage to the rising generation."
They formed the First Day Society to promote Sunday schools in Philadelphia and elected Bishop White as their president. William White had been one of those who took the lead in organizing the Episcopal Church when America became an independent nation. He wrote histories, revised the Episcopalian prayer book, and served as a chaplain to Congress.
For forty-six years he directed the First Day Society. The society hired rooms and opened its first school that March with John Ely and John Poor as teachers. Over the next nine years, the First Day Society enrolled 2,127 pupils and raised thousands of dollars.
("White, William." Dictionary of American Biography. New York: Scribner, 1958 - 1964.)