“Have A Good One — It’s Union Made” is the slogan on this cigar store advertising sign. It could also work as a Labor Day salutation. The first Labor Day celebration, held in New York City on Tuesday, Sept. 5, 1882, was planned by the Central Labor Union. Labor activists in other states adopted the holiday, and it was signed into national law by President Grover Cleveland in 1894.

At the time, the Cigar Maker’s International Union was one of the best-known and most influential trade unions in the country. This union started in 1864, about the time cigars were becoming popular in the U.S. Workers in the cigar industry often faced terrible conditions. Many non-union shops employed immigrant families, including young children, who worked in cramped, filthy tenement house shops for more than 12 hours a day at low wages.

In 1880, the Cigar Maker’s International Union introduced the “Blue Label” to be put on any box of cigars made in a union shop, and therefore under safe, sanitary conditions by fairly compensated adult workers. You can see the blue label reading “Union-made Cigars” on the front of the store counter in this advertising sign, which sold for $1,625 at Rich Penn Auctions.

The sign, with its design printed on an oak panel, was made by the Meyercord Company, which was founded by George Meyercord in Chicago in 1896. The date of this sign is not known, but the clothes on the figures indicate the early 1900s. So, by the time it was made, the Blue Label had been in use for years, and Labor Day was established as a national holiday.

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Q: Are you still in the business of appraising or giving advice about the price of antiques? I have an antique gateleg table and four matching chairs that I believe to be at least 60 years old.

A: We do not offer formal appraisals, but we can provide information and advice about your antiques and the values of similar pieces. The gateleg table was first made in the 17th century, putting it in the Colonial period of American history, and has been a popular space-saving style since then. There was a major Colonial revival in American furniture about the 1930s. From your estimate of your table’s age, it sounds like it was probably made about then. Unless made by a well-known designer, 20th-century furniture does not often sell for high prices. It often sells at antiques and consignment stores; many buyers consider it a higher quality alternative to the mass-produced furniture that sells at big box stores today. Similar table and chair sets have sold for about $300 to $500. You may want to check antiques stores in your area to see if they sell pieces like yours, and for how much. You can also look up recent country auctions and estate sales; many auction houses have results available online.

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Q: I have a small collection of hobnail glass and would like to know how I can find out what it is worth.

A: Hobnail is a glass pattern with small, raised bumps covering the piece. There are dozens of hobnail patterns made by many glass companies. One of the most famous hobnail patterns was made by Fenton Art Glass Company starting in 1940. The value of a piece depends on factors like its condition, age, color, maker and rarity. There are many price guides where you can look up values. General price guides like Kovel’s often have sections for hobnail and other glass patterns. Look for glass-specific price guides at your library. Check the directories on Kovels.com and AntiqueTrader.com for glass collectors’ clubs. They often have resources to help collectors identify and value their glass..

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CURRENT PRICES

Current prices are recorded from antiques shows, flea markets, sales and auctions throughout the United States. Prices vary in different locations because of local economic conditions.

Silver flatware, sterling, serving spoon, Virginiana, raised flowers on bowl, art nouveau flowers on handle, monogram, Gorham, 7 1/2 inches, $60.

Toy, car, Chevrolet, Corvette Stingray, painted, white, swiveling headlights, black tires, die cast, box, Corgi, 3 3/4 inches, $125.

Rug, Turkoman Bokhara, hexagon medallions, salmon, geometric field, salmon outer border, mid-20th century, runner, 2 feet 7 inches x 8 feet 3 inches, $130.

Picture, silhouette, scholar, standing, wearing cap and gown, scissor cut, signed, dated, frame, August Edouart, 1828, 11 1/2 x 8 inches, $220.

Buffalo Pottery Deldare, tankard, Dr. Syntax Entertained At College, 10 1/2 inches, $265.

Silver plate, basket, Aesthetic, top handle, applied leaves, cherries, berries, insects, copper, parcel gilt, four scrolled feet, quadruple plate, Meriden, c. 1900, 9 x 10 x 8 inches, $310.

Advertising, sign, Riverview Park, Reduced Rate Ride Booklets Here, blue lettering, pointing fingers in top corners, rectangular, Veribrite Signs, Chicago, 5 x 8 inches, $400.

Furniture, easel, Lucite, canvas holder, three beam mast, four beveled knob handles, 20th century, 71 inches, $930.

Photography, photograph, Workers at American Woolen Company, black and white, silver print, unsigned, Margaret Bourke-White, c. 1935, 14 x 11 inches, $1,205.

Moser, candelabrum, five-light, cased, cranberry, allover enamel, gold, white, green, red, blue, pink, cut cups and bobeche, scalloped rims, 21 1/2 x 15 inches, pair, $1,475.