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Triangle Fire significance/aftermath: the fire of the factory the Triangle Shirtwaist Company on March 11,1911 in New York City burned, killing 146 workers. The tragic incident was seen as preventable as the fire was a result of the poor working condition. The fire caught attention from the public of how terrible the conditions actually were. It was described as a true sweatshop, the employees were almost all  immigrant teenage women. It was a three story building with narrow walls. Two staircases, with one locked to prevent stealing. There were many things that were finally noticed for the development of laws and regulations. 

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Triangle Fire significance/aftermath: the fire of the factory the Triangle Shirtwaist Company on March 11,1911 in New York City burned, killing 146 workers. The tragic incident was seen as preventable as the fire was a result of the poor working condition. The fire caught attention from the public of how terrible the conditions actually were. It was described as a true sweatshop, the employees were almost all  immigrant teenage women. It was a three story building with narrow walls. Two staircases, with one locked to prevent stealing. There were many things that were finally noticed for the development of laws and regulations. 

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1. Better Wages, Safer Conditions, Shorter Work Hours: to make industrial labor more enjoyable and provide workers with free time to enjoy city amenities

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1. Better Wages, Safer Conditions, Shorter Work Hours: to make industrial labor more enjoyable and provide workers with free time to enjoy city amenities

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2. Stop child labor: to give children access to education, keep them from growing and aging too quickly

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2. Stop child labor: to give children access to education, keep them from growing and aging too quickly

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3. Provide aid to workers who were injured or retired: to help support the elderly generation of our nation and provide more helpful incentives for working (many workers who were injured or killed on the job received no justice because they were easily expendable- crusaders sought this missing justice)

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3. Provide aid to workers who were injured or retired: to help support the elderly generation of our nation and provide more helpful incentives for working (many workers who were injured or killed on the job received no justice because they were easily expendable- crusaders sought this missing justice)

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Arthur Le Sueur - Politician for the socialist party in North Dakota. He was a socialist newspaper editor, and lawyer. Author of ‘Take your industries out of politics’ (a famous book at the time). 

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Arthur Le Sueur - Politician for the socialist party in North Dakota. He was a socialist newspaper editor, and lawyer. Author of ‘Take your industries out of politics’ (a famous book at the time). 

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Marian Le Sueur - Wrote famous American classics such as Davy Crockett and Johnny Appleseed. She was also an avid socialist and women’s rights activist.

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Marian Le Sueur - Wrote famous American classics such as Davy Crockett and Johnny Appleseed. She was also an avid socialist and women’s rights activist.

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Samuel Gompers - Founder of the American Federation of Labor. He fought for better wages and working conditions for laborers while staying out of politics. He also published works in American-German Newspapers

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Samuel Gompers - Founder of the American Federation of Labor. He fought for better wages and working conditions for laborers while staying out of politics. He also published works in American-German Newspapers

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Eugene Debs - A famous socialist who started the Pullman Strike and created the American Socialist Party. He was well liked among workers and immigrants but very much disliked by the wealthy, upper class whites. 

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Eugene Debs - A famous socialist who started the Pullman Strike and created the American Socialist Party. He was well liked among workers and immigrants but very much disliked by the wealthy, upper class whites. 

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Socialists - This party was dedicated to the welfare of the working class. It called for radical reforms of some of the most common industries like railroads, oil, and steel. Extremely popular among the working class and immigrants. However, this did not gain popularity outside of these classes due to xenophobia and a common dislike for the working classes. 

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Socialists - This party was dedicated to the welfare of the working class. It called for radical reforms of some of the most common industries like railroads, oil, and steel. Extremely popular among the working class and immigrants. However, this did not gain popularity outside of these classes due to xenophobia and a common dislike for the working classes. 

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Democrats - Eventually, this party used some ideas from both Populists and Socialists to get more voters. But the Democrats were not as radical or as progressive as the Populists and Socialists. 

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Democrats - Eventually, this party used some ideas from both Populists and Socialists to get more voters. But the Democrats were not as radical or as progressive as the Populists and Socialists. 

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It went on to support such reforms as the direct election of U.S. senators, women's suffrage, industrial safety laws, a minimum wage for women, the eight-hour day, unemployment insurance, an inheritance tax, collective bargaining for workers, a ban on child labor

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It went on to support such reforms as the direct election of U.S. senators, women's suffrage, industrial safety laws, a minimum wage for women, the eight-hour day, unemployment insurance, an inheritance tax, collective bargaining for workers, a ban on child labor

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Passing of “initiative, referendum, recall” through public vote                                                           Initiative: adopting a change in law       Referendum: disapprove a law passed by legislature                                                                  Recall: remove an elected official from office 

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Passing of “initiative, referendum, recall” through public vote                                                           Initiative: adopting a change in law       Referendum: disapprove a law passed by legislature                                                                  Recall: remove an elected official from office 

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Crusaders, by Meridel Le Sueur. | Library of Congress Samuel Gompers | Encyclopedia.com Early DFL leader Marian Le Sueur was feminist, educator and socialist firebrand | Star Tribune Labor Movement - HISTORY. The state's initiative, referendum, and recall processes. [Ballot] 

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Crusaders, by Meridel Le Sueur. | Library of Congress Samuel Gompers | Encyclopedia.com Early DFL leader Marian Le Sueur was feminist, educator and socialist firebrand | Star Tribune Labor Movement - HISTORY. The state's initiative, referendum, and recall processes. [Ballot] 

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Haymarket Square- End of the Knights of Labor: During a strike at the height of labor reform, the Knights of Labor were facing off with a local militia. A bomb was unexpectedly thrown into the crowd, which ended up killing dozens of both laborers and millitamen. Many Americans believed the bomb was thrown by a Knight, which eventually ended their organization because they were seen as “violent and radical” (attention was shifted to the more peaceful AFL)

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Haymarket Square- End of the Knights of Labor: During a strike at the height of labor reform, the Knights of Labor were facing off with a local militia. A bomb was unexpectedly thrown into the crowd, which ended up killing dozens of both laborers and millitamen. Many Americans believed the bomb was thrown by a Knight, which eventually ended their organization because they were seen as “violent and radical” (attention was shifted to the more peaceful AFL)

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The 8 hour work week - Overtime came into existence and also helped work become safer and somewhat enjoyable.

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The 8 hour work week - Overtime came into existence and also helped work become safer and somewhat enjoyable.

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Child labor bans - Children can get educated and stay out of the streets

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Child labor bans - Children can get educated and stay out of the streets

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The Creation of the Minimum Wage - Protects workers against low pay. Has additionally led to conflict in our society today over raising the minimum wage.

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The Creation of the Minimum Wage - Protects workers against low pay. Has additionally led to conflict in our society today over raising the minimum wage.

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Insurance benefits like health and dental care, mental health services (therapists/counselors).

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Insurance benefits like health and dental care, mental health services (therapists/counselors).

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Collective bargaining - Allows workers to negotiate with higher authorities on a more even playing field (workers are not just shut down by the wealthy)

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Collective bargaining - Allows workers to negotiate with higher authorities on a more even playing field (workers are not just shut down by the wealthy)

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Women’s Suffrage - Women now have the right to vote, a (somewhat) equal wage- abortion law conflicts today (advocating for women’s rights over their body)

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Women’s Suffrage - Women now have the right to vote, a (somewhat) equal wage- abortion law conflicts today (advocating for women’s rights over their body)

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17th Amendment - Provided the election of US senators to be directly carried out by voters of the states (create more fair representation)

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17th Amendment - Provided the election of US senators to be directly carried out by voters of the states (create more fair representation)

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A cartoon relating to the 17th amendment

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Table of Contents

1. Working Conditions in The Triangle Shirtwaist Factory

2. What Started The Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire?

3. Importance of the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire

On March 25, 1911, the Triangle Shirtwaist Company factory in New York City burned, killing 146 workers. It is remembered as one of the most infamous incidents in American industrial history, as the deaths were largely preventable-most of the victims died as a result of neglected safety features and locked doors within the factory building. The tragedy brought widespread attention to the dangerous sweatshop conditions of factories, and led to the development of a series of laws and regulations that better protected the safety of workers.

Working Conditions in The Triangle Shirtwaist Factory

The Triangle factory, owned by Max Blanck and Isaac Harris, was located in the top three floors of the Asch Building, on the corner of Greene Street and Washington Place, in Manhattan. It was a true sweatshop, employing young immigrant women who worked in a cramped space at lines of sewing machines. Nearly all the workers were teenaged girls who did not speak English and worked 12 hours a day, every day. In 1911, there were four elevators with access to the factory floors, but only one was fully operational and the workers had to file down a long, narrow corridor in order to reach it. There were two stairways down to the street, but one was locked from the outside to prevent stealing and the other only opened inward. The fire escape was so narrow that it would have taken hours for all the workers to use it, even in the best of circumstances.

Did you know? Exactly 79 years to the day after the Triangle Shirtwaist factory fire, another tragic fire occurred in New York City. The blaze, at the Happy Land Social Club in the Bronx, killed 87 people, the most deadly fire in the city since 1911.

The danger of fire in factories like the Triangle Shirtwaist was well-known, but high levels of corruption in both the garment industry and city government generally ensured that no useful precautions were taken to prevent fires. Blanck and Harris already had a suspicious history of factory fires. The Triangle factory was twice scorched in 1902, while their Diamond Waist Company factory burned twice, in 1907 and in 1910. It seems that Blanck and Harris deliberately torched their workplaces before business hours in order to collect on the large fire-insurance policies they purchased, a not uncommon practice in the early 20th century. While this was not the cause of the 1911 fire, it contributed to the tragedy, as Blanck and Harris refused to install sprinkler systems and take other safety measures in case they needed to burn down their shops again.

Added to this delinquency were Blanck and Harris' notorious anti-worker policies. Their employees were paid a mere $15 a week, despite working 12 hours a day, every day. When the International Ladies Garment Workers Union led a strike in 1909 demanding higher pay and shorter and more predictable hours, Blanck and Harris' company was one of the few manufacturers who resisted, hiring police as thugs to imprison the striking women, and paying off politicians to look the other way.

What Started The Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire?

On March 25, a Saturday afternoon, there were 600 workers at the factory when a fire began in a rag bin. The manager attempted to use the fire hose to extinguish it, but was unsuccessful, as the hose was rotted and its valve was rusted shut. As the fire grew, panic ensued. The young workers tried to exit the building by the elevator but it could hold only 12 people and the operator was able to make just four trips back and forth before it broke down amid the heat and flames. In a desperate attempt to escape the fire, the girls left behind waiting for the elevator plunged down the shaft to their deaths. The girls who fled via the stairwells also met awful demises-when they found a locked door at the bottom of the stairs, many were burned alive.

Those workers who were on floors above the fire, including the owners, escaped to the roof and then to adjoining buildings. As firefighters arrived, they witnessed a horrible scene. The girls who did not make it to the stairwells or the elevator were trapped by the fire inside the factory and began to jump from the windows to escape it. The bodies of the jumpers fell on the fire hoses, making it difficult to begin fighting the fire. Also, the firefighters ladders reached only seven floors high and the fire was on the eighth floor. In one case, a life net was unfurled to catch jumpers, but three girls jumped at the same time, ripping the net. The nets turned out to be mostly ineffectual.

Within 18 minutes, it was all over. Forty-nine workers had burned to death or been suffocated by smoke, 36 were dead in the elevator shaft and 58 died from jumping to the sidewalks. With two more dying later from their injuries, a total of 146 people were killed by the fire.

Importance of the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire

The fire helped unite organized labor and reform-minded politicians like progressive New York Governor Alfred E. Smith and Senator Robert F. Wagner, one of the legislative architects of President Franklin D. Roosevelt's New Deal agenda. Frances Perkins, who served on a committee that helped to set up the Factory Investigating Commission in New York in the wake of the fire, would later become Roosevelt's Secretary of Labor. The workers union set up a march on April 5 on New York's Fifth Avenue to protest the conditions that had led to the fire. It was attended by 80,000 people.

Despite a good deal of evidence that the owners and management had been horribly negligent in the fire, a grand jury failed to indict them on manslaughter charges. To settle lawsuits against them, they eventually paid $75 in compensation to each victim's family-a fraction of the $400 per death that they were paid by their insurer.

Still, the massacre for which they were responsible did finally compel the city to enact reform. In addition to the Sullivan-Hoey Fire Prevention Law passed that October, the New York Democratic set took up the cause of the worker and became known as a reform party. Both were crucial in preventing similar disasters in the future.

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On March 25, 1911, the Triangle Shirtwaist Company factory in New York City burned, killing 146 workers. It is remembered as one of the most infamous incidents in American industrial history, as the deaths were largely preventable.

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July 19, 1881 -August 1881
It was a group of laundresses that were being under paid and worked since they were children until they were seen as “grown”. Starting with just 20 to 3,000 strikers,primarily African American women. Naming themselves part of the Washing Society. Their goal was to raise wages and improve work conditions for the women working. In August the strike ended with success and were recognized as instrumental to the New South’s economy