St. Wapniacl

St. Wapniacl is a mnemonic which was used for decades to help remember the offices of the U.S. Cabinet, in their order of creation and importance. The cabinet offices referred to by the mnemonic were State, Treasury, War, Attorney General, Postmaster General, Navy, Interior, Agriculture, Commerce, and Labor.[1]

Obsolescence

This mnemonic has been obsolete since 1947 when the Departments of War and the Navy were combined into the Department of Defense by the National Security Act of 1947.

The usefulness of this mnemonic has been further eroded by the following changes to the U.S. cabinet since 1947:

Although obsolete for over 70 years, St. Wapniacl can still be found to be referenced on occasion.[2]

Suggestions for replacement

A 1988 editorial in The New York Times first suggested a new mnemonic which has later been revised to become: "See The Dog Jump In A Circle; Leave Her House To Entertain Educated Veterans' Homes,"[3] corresponding to the names of the departments of State, Treasury, Defense, Justice (headed by the Attorney General), Interior, Agriculture, Commerce, Labor, Health and Human Services, Housing and Urban Development, Transportation, Energy, Education, Veterans Affairs, and Homeland Security.

See also

References
  1. "Old St. Wapniacl". The New York Times. December 28, 1992.
  2. Richardson, John. "THE LIFE OF ST. WAPNIACL". UCLA. Retrieved 11 November 2015.
  3. Rosenthal, Jack (Aug 29, 2004). "When four letters are more than enough, why not try the X-word (editorial)". Taipei Times. NY Times News Service. Retrieved 11 November 2015.

Literature
  • Hart, Kenneth D., Visualized Problems of American Democracy, New York: Oxford Book Company, 1936.
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