As human transitioned from hunter-gatherer to specialized workers, unions of specialized groups of various sectors emerged. There would be woolen textile guilds in France, for example, and various ‘gilds’ of craftsmen in England, banding together to control output and prices. The gilds failed to make their way across the pond in the their full form — but a trade union of sorts did survive, first organizing in the Massachusetts Bay Colony.

On this day, October 19, in 1648 the Boston “Company of Shoomakers” formed a group in response to complaints “by occasion of bad ware made by some of the trade.” This was the first proto-trade union in America.

Their goal was to set a quality standard and eliminate the shoddy workmanship. Massachusetts legislature forbade any kind of collective charity for the families of members, as well as the fixing of prices — which was deemed by Massachusetts Bay to be against the public interest. The “shoomakers” also had to undergo the Old World apprenticeship program, where craftsmen entering a trade first were required to serve for a time under the tutelage of masters.