The Father of Labor Day in Ohio

Cincinnati Change joins for the 4th year the Cleveland Chapter of the Coalition of Black Trade Unionists in Commemoration of the Father of Labor Day, the Honorable John Patterson Green (1845-1940)

The Cleveland Chapter of the Coalition of Black Trade Unionists which consists of members from seventy-seven international and national unions recognizes John Patterson Green’s legislative sponsorship of Labor Day in Ohio. House Bill 500 was passed on April 28, 1890 and consisted of one sentence:

“Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of Ohio, that the first Monday in September of each and every year shall be known as Labor Day . . .”

In 1894, the U.S. Congress passed a bill making Labor Day a national holiday.

Patterson Green’s efforts preceded the accomplishments of organized labor leaders such as A. Philip Randolph, Sleeping Car Porters; John L. Lewis, United Mine Workers; Philip Murray, United Steel Workers; Jimmy Hoffa,Teamsters; Walter Reuther, United Auto Workers; and Cesar Chavez, United Farm Workers.

Born in New Bern, North Carolina, John Patterson Green became Cleveland’s first black lawyer and first black elected official (Justice of the Peace) and was also the second African-American elected to serve in the Ohio House of Representatives in 1882.

John P. Green's parents were African-Americans, but free. Too poor to attend school, he worked as a harness maker, a tailor, and a waiter before writing and self-publishing Miscellaneous Subjects by a Self-Educated Colored Youth when he was 21. After the book's success, he attended high school and law school, and became one of the first black elected officials north of the Mason-Dixon line when he was elected Justice of the Peace in Cleveland, in 1873. In 1881 he was elected to the Ohio House, and in 1891 he was elected to the Ohio Senate.

In addition to Miscellaneous Subjects by a Self-Educated Colored Youth (1866) he wrote Recollections of the Inhabitants, Localities, Superstitions and KuKlux Outrages of the Carolinas (1880) and Fact Stranger than Fiction (1920, autobiography)

As a legislator, he sponsored 21 bills favorable to labor issues, including House Bill 500 in 1890, which established a state holiday honoring working men and women. Labor unions had staged annual parades and picnics since 1882, but Green's bill made Labor Day an official holiday in Ohio, to be celebrated on the first Monday of September, effective in 1891. Three years later the US Congress followed suit, making Labor Day a national holiday. After leaving the State Assembly, Green worked for many years as a lawyer and postal official, and at the time of his death -- struck by a streetcar at the age of 95 -- he was the oldest attorney practicing in Ohio.

During his second elected term in 1890, the state of Ohio enacted Labor Day legislation that earned him the title “Father of Labor Day in Ohio.” The former common laborer and lawyer wanted to honor all working men and women in Ohio with the idea of establishing a holiday to celebrate the contributions of workers (not politicians).

The Honorable John Patterson Green served three successive terms in the Ohio General Assembly, including two terms in the House of Representatives (1882-1883 and 1890-1891). In 1892, he was elected to the Ohio Senate, making him the first African-American elected to a state senate north of the Mason-Dixon Line in the United States. While serving as an Ohio state legislator, John Patterson Green sponsored and supported 21 major bills on behalf of labor.

During his professional and legislative career, he counted among his closest friends Mr. & Mrs. John D. (Ms. Lara C. Spellman) Rockefeller, Marcus A. Hanna and George A. Myers—all captains of industry. He also was a friend of and assisted Civil Rights leaders, such as Harry Smith, Booker T. Washington, Frederick Douglas, Charles Chestnut, and other black leaders of his day.

Mr. Green was also befriended by and received appointments to federal positions by Presidents James A. Garfield and William McKinley. Of all his associations and accomplishments, however, the Honorable John Patterson Green was most proud of his work to honor all working men and women of this nation by initiating Labor Day.

Robert E. Saffold is a former member of Laborers Local 935 in Warren and was elected union department chairman of Local 1375 United Steelworkers of America (Republic Steel) in Warren. He is a registered lobbyist for the Ohio Minority Contractors Association and current chairman and CEO of the African-American Business and Contractors Association Inc. This material on John Patterson Green was researched at the Western Reserve Historical Society, Cleveland, Ohio by Minister Robert E. Saffold. He was project coordinator for the research and publication of this piece for the Cleveland chapter of the Coalition of Black Trade Unionists.

Since its founding conference in 1972, The Coalition of Black Trade Unionists (CBTU) stature among African American workers has grown. Currently, more than 77 different international and national unions are represented in CBTU. With 50 chapters nationwide and one in Ontario, Canada, CBTU is maximizing the strength and influence of black workers in unions and empowering their communities.