YOUNGSTOWN — Youngstown holds a lot of labor history — including nurse labor history.

The Youngstown General Duty Nurses Association exhibit opens at 6 p.m. Thursday at the Youngstown Historical Center of Industry and Labor.

The exhibit is called “A Legacy of Dignity, Strength, and Caring, 1966-2018.” It chronicles the history of the YGDNA, the first nurses’ union in Ohio and the second in the country from its inception over a wage dispute in 1966 to the hospital’s closing just three years ago.

The nurses’ union served as a voice for the registered nurses at the Youngstown Hospital Association, eventually extending to Northside, Southside and Tod Babies and Children’s Hospital and Beeghly Medical Park. The union worked to improve conditions affecting the quality of patient care as well as welfare issues of wages, benefits and the work environment.

Laurie Hornberger, BSN RN, is the former and last president of the nurses association. She said nurses in this union forged friendships and created a community that enabled them to bolster each other as they faced stressful situations on a daily basis.

The association dissolved after the closure of Northside Hospital. Nurses of YGDNA donated solely local union dues of $50,000 to the Youngstown Historical Center of Industry and Labor to archive their nurse labor history.

“For decades the newspapers, TV stations, and radio stations have covered the YGDNA stories while the nurses fought for better patients’ outcomes and fought for better working conditions. Nurses were able to speak out with a protected voice for their patients without the fear of losing their jobs due to the nurses’ union,” Hornberger said in a news release.

The exhibit opens to the public 6 to 8 p.m. Thursday, and an RSVP is preferred.

The museum is supported by the Ohio History Connection and managed by the History Program at Youngstown State University.

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