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Triangle Factory Fire Essay

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Owners Of The Triangle Factory Fire: Corruption At It's Finest The Triangle Factory fire, one of the most horrific disasters before 9/11, killed a total of 146 people. The owners, Max Blanck and Isaac Harris, who escaped the building through the roof when the fire happened, were charged with second-degree manslaughter and went on trial on December 4, 1911. This trial did not go any further, as they were later released because of the lack of evidence the investigators had found during their investigation to prove that the fire was their fault. The insurance company paid Max and Isaac about $400 per casualty in the fire, making big money (Wikipedia “Consequences and Legacy”). But how did the fire start? Was it an accident, or was it an act …show more content…

To determine this, many sources and ideas must be recognized and appointed. One of the ideas that has come to mind was that a cigarette butt from the workers who had secretly been smoking had made it's way into the cloth bin and, because of the highly flammable material the blouses were made of, it set the bin and the building ablaze. Another idea that has come to mind is that maybe the owners of the establishment, Max and Isaac, burned the building down on purpose, making this an even more interesting topic. Some of the evidence that has risen up from the possible dark truth below is that the doors leading out of the building on the ninth floor, where the doors were supposedly locked and/ or were designed to be pushed outwards instead of inwards. Max and Isaac claim that this was because of a theft concern, and that this would keep minimal thefts happening (Martin par 8). But in reality, the thefts they had totaled up to being less than $25 (Linder “The Trial”). Also, their fire escape was old and rusty, and even fell off of the hinges before the fire was over. These and other unsafe properties to the buildings safety were more reasons that the 146 workers died that day. Maybe this was an accident, or maybe it was planned. For now, however, it will be continued to be known as an …show more content…

Well, first of all, almost all of their employees were either Italian or Jewish women (Ephemeral par 5), working at least six of every seven days in a week for low wages. Secondly, you have to take into consideration that Max and Isaac themselves were also Jewish, so they had some of the same rules and beliefs as some of the other people who worked there, such as “To try and make the world a better place”, but that doesn't mean they weren't greedy. Some of the people who died in the fire were their relatives, which because of family, makes it a little bit harder to blame them for the fire. But, Blanck and Harris were not the gooey-gumdrops they may seem. They hired prostitutes to fight off some of the strikers in their business, so that they could get the strikers jailed. With all of this information, I think it's safe to say that Max and Isaac may have had something against Italians or other Jewish people, but that is just a possibility. Either way, all we know is what they did in their establishments, not what they did to

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Many people might say, why was the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire so important? The Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire was so important because it was a tragedy that opened the nation's eyes to poor working conditions in garment factories. Other question might be ask why were the doors locked in the Triangle Shirtwaist fire? The building had only one fire escape, Long tables and bulky machines trapped many of the victims. Panicked workers were crushed as they struggled with doors that were locked by managers to prevent theft, or doors that opened the wrong way.

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On March 25, 1911, a fire started at the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory that claimed the lives of one hundred and forty-six workers. As a result of the fire, trials and debates occurred that contended the factory owners right to control their business against their duty to implement safe working conditions for their employees. Despite the trial resulting in no charges for the business owners the triangle fire is responsible for stricter safety codes and brought attention on the labor movement. In order to fully understand the changes that resulted because of the shirtwaist fire, you must first know what life was life prior to the fire.

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The Triangle Factory Fire Case On March 25 1911 a fire broke out on the 8th floor of the Triangle Shirtwaist company. The fire quickly spread to the other floors of the building. After the fire ceased it left 146 dead and 71 injured. The fire mostly affected the 8th and 9th floor. Most of the people on the 10th flof survived the fire with not to many injuries.

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The Triangle Fire trial was a famous trial in December of 1911 after a detrimental fire broke out in March of the same year. This fire occurred at a shirtwaist factory in Manhattan, New York City. 146 workers’ lives were taken during the fire from smoke inhalation while trapped inside with limited ways out and other fatalities occurred from employees jumping out of windows nine to ten floors high. The trial outcome was not what most wanted after the two negligent owners were not held accountable for their actions regarding the fire and the deaths from it. Interviews, transcripts, and appeals can be used to understand how the Triangle fire led to a push for better working conditions in factory work settings.

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Many mistakes in the factory’s operation contributed to cause the large number of deaths, however, this tragedy led to a better future for workers across America. While the cause of the fire is unknown, it began on the eighth floor, causing disaster for the underpaid, overworked employees. The

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The emergency response was ineffective because “Others waited at the windows for the rescue workers only to discover that the firefighters' ladders were several stories too short and the water from the hoses could not reach the top floors”. Because of the poorly enforced law of doors must be unlocked in the workplace, many died. Americans knew this carelessness should never happen again; therefore, people wanted change. During the trial of the Triangle Fire a witness Samuel Bernstein said, “I was the last one there and I seen the flames was coming up through the roof on the Greene St. and uptown side.

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The detrimental Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire is considered to be one of the most tragic disasters in history. On March 25th, 1911, a fire broke out and killed 146 garment workers who were mostly women. These women worked countless hours with low wages and inhumane working conditions in a factory. Even though this event was tragic, the triangle shirtwaist fire helped to shape the new world for the better. The multitude of workers trapped within the inferno to their demise was the final straw for the mistreatment of America’s workers.

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In April 2013, Matthew Yglesias, an American Economics Journalist proposed the people of Bangladesh would not appreciate having stronger safety standards in their country because it would cause undue harm economically. He asserts Bangladesh should have different lower standards for safety because they are a poorer country. Most of the people involved in the New York tragedy of 1911 also known as the Triangle Fire, would not agree with Matthew Yglesias on his assertion that lower economic status would be an indication of lower safety standards in factories. Namely, the workers, the union leaders, the progressive reformers and the political leaders would all vote for higher standards commiserate with the United States. The only ones who would not argue with Yglesias are the owners of the Triangle Factory with their vested interest, their own problems of multiple fires and accusations of safety neglect.

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One being locked for safety purposes; the other only being able to be opened from the outside. The one fire escape would not have been adequate enough to sufficiently evacuate the workers. Blanck and Harris were known to have burned down their factories for the fire insurance, so they refused to install a sprinkler system. The fire was started from a rag bin. Someone tried to put the fire out with a hose, but the hose was rotted and the valve rusted shut.

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