For sale is an early 1900s WORKER’S UNION RIBBON from Cumberland, Maryland. This antique union ribbon is from the American Flint Glass Workers’ Union (AFGWU). The ribbon measures about 9 inches in length. The ribbon is topped with a celluloid pin of depicting a handshake. This ribbon has two sides. One side has a colorful patriotic red, shite and blue design with the US flag and a medal. The local union’s model was “Obedience to the Majority”. The medal states that the local 69 was organized on April 12, 1919. The other side of the ribbon is solid black with IN MEMORIAM text. The ribbon would have been worn one way or the other depending on the function. The ribbon would be worn with the black in memoriam side out if the member was attending a funeral of a member and the other side displayed for other union business. This historical item is eye-catching and unusual. This ribbon is in excellent condition except for the fact that the metal fastening pin is broken. Finding a union ribbon in this stellar condition with its original mailing envelope is a rare find.
The ribbon comes with its original mailing envelop from the company that manufactured the ribbon: Whitehead & Hoag Company, makers of banners, flags, buttons, society emblems, and adverting novelties. Lodge ribbons were normally worn with the colorful side in view.
The American Flint Glass Workers’ Union (AFGWU) was a labor union representing workers involved in making glassware and related goods in the United States and Canada. This union was founded in Pittsburgh on July 1, 1878, by locals which split away from the Knights of Labor. In 1901, workers involved in making glass bottles split away to join the Glass Bottle Blowers’ Association. By 1925, the union had 6,900 members and was based in Toledo, Ohio. From 1955, it was affiliated to the new AFL–CIO, growing to 35,000 members by 1957. By 2003, membership was down to 12,000, and the union merged into the United Steelworkers.
