September 16, 2016

The very first Labor Day in the United States was celebrated on September 5, 1882 in New York City. The day was celebrated with a picnic, concert and speeches. Ten thousand workers marched in a parade from City Hall to Union Square. The idea of celebrating American labor spread and by 1887, Oregon, Massachusetts, New York, New Jersey and Colorado made Labor Day a state holiday. Beginning in 1894, the first Monday of September was designated "National Labor Day," a date set by President Grover Cleveland.