I think we can all agree that we love Labor Day festivities: cook outs, massive department store sales, and having a day off school or work. I know that I am seriously pumped to sleep in past six in the morning on Monday. Although I have a deep appreciation for my day off from being a full time college student and part time employee, I honestly did not know why I was receiving such an amazing gift.

If you were to search on the internet why we celebrated Labor Day, you would find a statement much like this one: "The first Monday in September is a creation of the labor movement and is dedicated to the social and economic achievements of American workers. It constitutes a yearly national tribute to the contributions that workers have made to the strength, prosperity, and well being of our country." After my search brought me to this statement, I still felt as though I needed more information on who to thank for creating such a day and giving me a much needed holiday.

There is a debate about who came up with the idea for the holiday. Was it Peter McGuire? A carpenter and general secretary of the Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners and a co-founder of the American Federation of Labor? Mr. McGuire was assumed to be the first in suggesting a day to honor those "who from rude nature have delved and carved all the grandeur we behold." Our other contender is Matthew Maguire, a machinist. Recent research seems to support the contention that Matthew Maguire proposed the holiday in 1882 while serving as secretary of the Central Labor Union in New York. Over 100 years after the first Labor Day was celebrated, we still have not decided who created the holiday. Either way, I thank both of these men for their ideas.

The first official Labor Day holiday was celebrated on Tuesday September 5, 1882, in New York City, in accordance with the plans of the Central Labor Union. A year later, the Union held it's second Labor Day on September 5, 1883. In 1884 the first Monday in September was selected as the day to celebrate the holiday, as originally proposed. The Central Labor Union urged organizations similar to theirs to do the same. Over the years the idea of the holiday grew with the creation of labor unions, and in 1885 Labor Day was celebrated in many industrial centers of the country.

After learning all this information I felt as though I could enjoy my holiday to the fullest. I knew who created this wonderful day, why the day is celebrated, and what it feels like to sleep in until nine.