Have a wonderful Labor Day holiday
Labor Day arrives the first Monday of September — Sept. 4 this year — a holiday that traditionally marks the end of summer with one last three-day weekend before the arrival of fall.
The origin of this federal holiday that celebrates America’s working men and women remains somewhat murky. According to the U.S. Department of Labor, some sources report union leader Peter J. McGuire suggested a holiday to honor workers, but others attribute the idea to machinist Matthew Maguire, whose Central Labor Union in New York formed a committee to investigate the idea. Labor Day was first celebrated Tuesday, Sept. 5, 1882.
In 1884, the first Monday in September was picked as the date for the Labor Day celebration.
In 1885, celebrations of the “workman’s holiday” spread to include many communities. While many local communities recognized Labor Day, Oregon became the first state to recognize the holiday on Feb. 21, 1887. The holiday celebration quickly spread to 23 other states by 1894 — and on June 28 of that year Congress made Labor Day a legal holiday.
At the American Federation of Labor convention of 1909, the Sunday preceding Labor Day was adopted as Labor Sunday, dedicated to the spiritual and educational aspects of the labor movement.
We no longer celebrate Labor Day with local parades and speeches by local politicians and dignitaries, preferring to spend the weekend with family and friends out in nature.
Alcohol
As we celebrate a few days off from work this Labor Day weekend, it’s easy to overindulge, and we encourage everyone to drink responsibly this Labor Day weekend.
We should remember alcohol can be a contributing factor in many accidents — and even deaths on our roadways and waterways.
Drinking and driving or operating any kind of motorized vehicle just don’t mix. Accidents can happen at any time, especially when you least expect them.
Don’t become a statistic. Don’t drink and drive.
Be fire safe
We don’t need any more fires in Lassen County.
It’s hard to miss the dry vegetation and trees as we travel through our forests and our wild lands. We encourage hikers, campers, fishermen and revelers to take extra care and caution with fire over the holiday. With these dry conditions fires can start easily and quickly become a conflagration — an unfortunate development for everything in a massive fire’s path.
Have a wonderful holiday
We hope all the visitors to our county this weekend and all our local residents will enjoy a fantastic three-day weekend. We wish each and every one of you a happy and safe Labor Day.