and Canada. This organization in 1886 voted to merge with other trade unions and the name, American Federation of Labor, was adopted.
In addition to the trade unions of the period, such as the International Typographical Union and the Cigar Makers' International Union, and the national federations, such as the National Labor Union and the Industrial Congresses, the Knights of Labor and numerous ephemeral labor organizations appeared whose ideal was that of "one big union." Like the Knights of Labor these organizations practically ignored trade lines. Except in the case of a few controlled by the socialists, they were in reality reform associations composed chiefly of wage earners. These ephemeral organizations are interesting chiefly because they throw some light upon the conditions of the period and upon the ideals and demands of the wage earners. The decade of the seventies was especially prolific of ephemeral labor-reform associations.
The National Guard of Industry was organized in 1869. It admitted "all trustworthy persons who earn their bread by the sweat of their brow" and who are friendly to its purposes. The platform of the order was a peculiar hotch-potch of humanitarianism, trade unionism and political reform; it favored the eight-hour day and cooperation, and opposed granting land to corporations.[1] The "early closing movement" is not of recent origin. As early as 1866 or 1867, in New York City, a "Dry Goods Clerks' Early Closing Association" was in existence. The Supreme Mechanical Order of the Sun was established in the early sixties. It was still in existence in 1869, a secret order having an extensive ritual and several degrees.
In 1872, the Christian Labor Union was formed for the purpose of influencing the Church to aid in the establishment of cooperative associations. The Association of United Workers of America, called by Professor Commons the "nationalized International," came into being in 1874, and was apparently merged into the Workingmen's Party two years later. It was a socialist organization. Each member was expected to support only those political movements which aimed directly at the economic emancipation of the wage earners.[2]
The Junior Sons of '76 "do not attribute all our suffering to any single cause, but to a variety of causes." They appealed to all workers to unite "against the growing power of monopolies" by using the ballot. Laboring men should be elected to office. The Junior Sons was a secret organization supposed to be composed exclusively of workingmen. In the spring of 1875, it was stated that in several counties of Pennsylvania the majority of the voters were members of
