Hardin County History - McGuffey, Ohio

The village of McGuffey, home of the first chartered agricultural workers' union and one of the largest agricultural workers' strikes in national history, was honored with a historical marker in August 1999 by the Ohio Bicentennial Commission.
At the turn of the 20th century, the Scioto Marsh just outside of McGuffey had become a center of onion trade in the United States. In support of the onion workers, the American Federation of Labor (AFL) helped create the first chartered agricultural workers' union. Intolerable working conditions and low wages caused hundreds of workers to leave the fields in July of 1934 and pour into McGuffey, leading to one of the most tumultuous strikes in Ohio history.

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August 14, 1999