Triangle Shirtwaist Fire of 1911

The Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire in New York City on March 25, 1911 was the largest industrial disaster in the history of the city of New York. It caused 146 workers to die from the fire or workers who jumped to their deaths. It was the worst workplace disaster in New York City until September 11, 2001. The fire led to improved factory safety standards and helped increase the growth of the International Ladies Garment Workers Union, which fought for safer and better working conditions for sweatshop workers in that industry. The Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Building is also known as the Asch Building and as the Brown Building. The Triangle Shirtwaist Company was owned by Max Blanck and Isaac Harris, in New York City at the intersection of Greene Street and Washington Place, east of Washington Square. It occupied the last three floors of the building. The company manufactured women's blouses, which at the time were called “shirtwaists.” The company employed approximately 600 workers, mostly young immigrant women from different places in Germany, Italy and Eastern Europe. Some of the women were as young as 12 or 13 and worked 14 hour shifts in a week. According to Pauline Newman, a worker at the factory, the average wage for employees in the factory was $6 - $7 a week. On March 25. 1911 a fire began on the eighth floor, which was said to be sparked by a lit match or a cigarette or because of faulty electrical wiring. A New York Times article stated that the fire may have been started by the engines running the sewing machines in the building. To this day, no one knows whether it was accidental or intentional. The only outside fire escape, which was poorly-anchored, twisted and collapsed under the weight of people trying to escape. The elevator had also stopped working. The fire department arrived quickly but was unable to stop the flames because there were no ladders that could reach past the 6th floor. The Asch building survived the fire and was fixed. Frederick Brown later bought the building and donated the structure to New York University in 1929 now known as the Brown Building of Science. The building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places and was named a National Historical Landmark in 1991. The building also was listed as a New York City Landmark in 2003.The building is now a part of New York University and has been reconstructed into the chemistry building. Two plaques in the front of the building commemorate the women who lost their lives in the fire.


http://www.ilr.cornell.edu/trianglefire/narrative1.html