Happy Labor Day

1882 – The first Labor Day holiday parade was held in New York City. It was sponsored by the Central Labor Union. Some 10,000 workers — all men — participated in the parade. It was to honor the men of labor. Ironicly the 1st Labor Day was actually celebrated on a Tuesday. Until Labor Day became a federal holiday in 1894, laborers who chose to participate in parades had to forfeit a day's wages.

Labor Day is devoted to no man, living or dead, to no sect, race, or nation." In 1884, the first Monday in September was selected as the holiday, as originally proposed, and the Central Labor Union urged similar organizations in other cities to follow the example of New York and celebrate a "workingmen's holiday" on that date. The idea spread with the growth of labor organizations, and in 1885 Labor Day was celebrated in many industrial centers of the country. Many other labor organizations, notably the affiliates of the International Workingmen's Association, favored a May 1 holiday. With the event of Chicago's Haymarket riots in early May of 1886, some believed that a May 1 holiday could become an opportunity to commemorate the riots. Thus, fearing that May Day holidays might strengthen the socialist movement, some moved to support the position of the Knights of Labor and their date for Labor Day. Through the years the 25 June 1938


1940: The Wages and Hours (later Fair Labor Standards) Act is passed, banning child labor and setting the 40-hour work week. The Act went into effect in October 1940, and was upheld in the Supreme Court on 3 February 1941.nation gave increasing emphasis to Labor Day. The first governmental recognition came through municipal ordinances passed during 1885 and 1886.

1956 – Johnny Cash hit the record running with I Walk the Line. Cash’s debut hit song climbed to #17 on the pop music charts.
1960 – Cassius Clay of Louisville, KY won the gold medal in light heavyweight boxing at the Olympic Games in Rome, Italy. Clay would later change his name to Muhammad Ali and become one of the great boxing champions in the world. In 1996, at the Olympic Games in Atlanta, GA, Muhammad Ali was given the honor of lighting the Olympic flame.


1964 – The Animals’ House of the Rising Sun made it to #1. It stayed at the top until it was replaced three weeks later by Roy Orbison’s Oh, Pretty Woman. Orbison’s smash was just entering the pop charts on this day for a 14-week run.

1986 – After 23 years of “oohing” and “aahing,” laughing and kibitzing as host of various talk shows, Merv Griffin aired his final program — for Metromedia Television.

The World Wide Web was born in 1992, changing the way we communicate (email), spend our money (online gambling, stores), and do business (e-commerce). By 1994, 3 million people were online. And by 1998, this figure increased to 100 million people. It is estimated that by 2001, some 1 billion people will be connected. Internet lingo like plug-ins, BTW (by the way), GOK (God only knows), IMHO (in my humble opinion), FAQS, SPAM, FTP, ISP, and phrases like "See you online" or "The server's down" or "Bill Gates" became part of our everyday vocabulary. We signed our mail with a :-) smile, a ;-) wink, or a :-* kiss. And - everyone has a cell phone (even Jason at right!)

2000: Kenny Lofton's first inning run ties a 1939 major league record set by Yankees' Red Rolfe for scoring in eighteen consecutive games.

2002 U.S.A. Kelly Clarkson Wins First American Idol



2002 : Kelly Clarkson a former Texas waitress wins the first series of American Idol after 15.5m votes were cast by telephone by American Idol viewers. American Idol has been the summer's new programme success with audiences in excess of 15 million.

2010: And of course everyone knows there's no wearing white after Labor Day??? Labor Day has come to be recognized in the United States not only as a celebration of the working class, but also as the unofficial end of the summer season. In the northern half of the U.S. the summer vacation season begins with Memorial Day and ends with Labor Day.