Union leader Peter J. McGuire is generally given credit for the idea of Labor Day in the United States, but it was likely another leader, Matthew Maguire, who suggested to the Central Labor Union of New York a celebration honouring workers. This resulted in a parade of some 10,000 workers on September 5, 1882. By 1885 Labor Day celebrations were being held in a number of states, and in 1894 U.S. President Grover Cleveland signed into law a bill making Labor Day a national holiday.
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