Milliners, Madness, and a McGuire

We have a McGuire to thank for this Labor Day weekend. Was it Peter McGuire, the co-founder of the American Federation of Labor, or Matthew McGuire, an officer with Local 344 of the International Association of Machinists? Both men have about the same idea at about the same time. New York City hosted the first Labor Day celebration on Tuesday, September 5, 1882. But the first state to pass a law establishing Labor Day as an official holiday was Oregon (yay!) back in February 21, 1887.

In this...