The first Labor Day parade occurred in 1882 in New York City and was covered by numerous New York newspapers, some not looking favorably on the event.
A carpenter and labor union leader, named Peter J. McGuire, came up with the idea for Labor Day. He thought American workers should be honored with their own holiday. The New York Central Labor Union liked McGuire’s proposal for the holiday, and in early 1882 Labor Day was established in that state. The first Labor Day was held on Tuesday, September 5, 1882 and consisted of a parade in New York City, in which 10,000 workers marched from City Hall to Union Square. Picnics and speeches occurred during the event.
The parade consisted of workers in the fields of clothing cutters, horseshoers, shoemakers, upholsterers, printers, house painters, freight handlers, cabinet makers, varnishers, cigar makers, bricklayers and piano makers.
The parade was covered by multiple New York newspapers. The New York Tribune reported, “The men who took part in the labor parade generally appeared to be persons of no small intelligence. It is a pity that workingmen allow themselves to be so cheapened.”
The story then looked at the organizers of the Central Labor Union, referring to those organizers as “demagogues of the worst kind. It is not at all unlikely that certain demagogues and dishonest leaders thought it a good time of year to show the two great political parties that there are ten thousand ballots in this city in the hands of men who…might be at the disposal of somebody — for a consideration.” (A state election was taking place two months later, in which some members of the Central Labor Union were running for office. Certain members of the media felt that labor union leaders were only giving laborers what they wanted, their own parade, because it would help sway votes in their favor come the election).
The New York Times also reported on the parade, making note on the lack of participants, expecting more than the 10,000 who actually marched. A part of the article read, “Laborers preferred to enjoy the day in quiet excursions in Coney Island, Glen Island and elsewhere”, or that they simply just didn’t take the day off from work.
The New York Sun described the spectator scene for this parade, reporting, “As far ahead as one could see and as far down the side streets as forms and faces could be distinguished, the windows and roofs and even the lamp posts and awning frames were occupied by people anxious to get a good view of the first parade in New York of workingmen of all trades united in one organization.”
The Sun then went on to describe the parade as a mob scene, though the Times wrote it was “conducted in an orderly and pleasant manner.”
The story of the parade was carried in papers across the country, even making front page news in a Dallas, Texas paper.
St. Paul’s Daily Globe, a newspaper out of Minnesota, reported that 20,000 participants marched, double the amount who actually did.
Numerous towns and cities across the country would end up holding their own Labor Day festivities over the years, so much so that Labor Day was made a national holiday in 1894.
