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Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire Essay

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The Triangle shirtwaist factory fire on March 25, 1911, was one of the worst tragedies ever back then, causing the death of 146 workers. This company was owned by Max Blank and Isaac Harris. They had a little shop by 1900 and it grew quickly, they moved their business to the ninth floor of the new ten-story Asch building. There were approximately 500 workers, mostly immigrant women, worked at the Triangle shirtwaist company. Bessie Cohen, who survived was inside the building and wrote a short story of what had happened. Most women either died from the fire or jumped from a high height. They jumped because the fire trucks' ladders could only reach up to seventh floor. The doors were locked to prevent workers from stealing or leaving, thus, they …show more content…

They emigrated from Russia and met in the United States. By 1900 they had a little shop and it grew up quickly that they moved their business into Asch Building in the 8th floor then they moved to the tenth floor. There were approximately 500 people, mostly women who worked at the Triangle Waist Company. They worked at 7: 30 AM during the busy season, until nine o'clock in the evening. They didn't get paid any overtime on their paychecks. Many of the workers were very young, as low as age of …show more content…

Bessie Cohen, who survived was inside the building when the scene happened. She asked her friend to ask the foreman to give her a 50-cent raise. Within the next 15 minutes, the triangle caught up on fire killing 30 percent of workers. She heard a foreman shout to her, "Bessie, save yourself." She remembers when she looked at her friend Dora, then she looked again and she was gone. She was one of those who jumped from the window. The fire trucks' ladders could only reach up to the seventh floor. So they couldn't save the people above seventh floor. Also, firefighters held nets below, but there were jumping at the same time, so the nets couldn't hold them, so they died. A few workers rushed to the elevator to no avail. Most of those who lost their lives had worked on the ninth floor. Also, the doors from the shop areas were locked, to keep the women at their sewing machines. That's unsafe for the workers. Some workers managed to escape to the roof. Finally, they have revealed the cause of the fire. According to the Triangle book, cigarette was the cause of the fire and due to the cottons (which is flammable), oxygen (explosively) papers, woods, and materials it grew bigger and blazed the workers killing them in instant that they had no time to

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Some of the women bodies fell on top of the fire hoses, strangling the firefighter’s duty to fight the fire. When the firefighters tried to put the fire out, they

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Also the nets they used to try and save the people jumping from windows weren't strong enough so they didn't work but with safety codes they wouldn't have had that many people jumping at once or maybe even at all. The worst thing about the Triangle Factory building is that there was no fire escapes in the

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Remembering the Triangle Shirtwaist fire Disaster hit March 25, 1911 at 4:40 pm at the Triangle Shirt Waste Factory when it caught on fire by a cigarette bud or burning match. The employees were mainly young women and girls of Italian and Jewish decent and 146 died that day. The workers wanted out of the building but one of the doors was locked in the stairwell. Speculation was that Isaac Harris locked the door. Some of the women and girls jumped off the building and out the windows to trying to survive which was interfering with the firemen trying to put out the fire.

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There was no stopping for the bathroom or for a drink, just continuous work. The owners of this company that was so dangerous were Isaac Harris and Max Blanck. These men feared the consequences of a union within their factory walls, and were very insistent that no

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First, the acting fire department commissioner could have enforced the owners and workers to participate in fire drills. These drills could have deterred the number of employees that traveled to the roof and prevented the number of employees that ultimately jumped to their death. While New York at the time was working on passing stricter factory fire protection laws, there should have been more fire inspections at this particular facility due to the four previous fires that had occurred. When we look closely at this fire, blueprints show that the stairwells were only a mere 33 inches wide. With the amount of workers entering and exiting this building 33 inches is not enough when large quantities of people must exit quickly while fire personnel is coming to distinguish any fires.

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The triangle shirtwaist company was owned by Max Blanck and Isaac Harris and was located on the Greene Street in Manhattan. Most of the workers were teenaged girls that worked long hours daily. Most were immigrants and knew little English. In March 25, 1911 a fire was initiated at the top of the Asch Building where the company was located. How the fire started is still a mystery.

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Despite the death and destruction it caused, the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire ultimately benefited America by opening the eyes of mistreated factory workers and inspiring them to fight for better working conditions. Though it was unbeknownst at the time, the fire would inspire mistreated workers to rise out of the ashes and work tirelessly not for a factory, but for their own wellbeing. The history, the fire, and the trial that are all connected to the Triangle Shirtwaist Company are the events that led to the exploration for better working conditions. While we may not wish to remember all of the suffering the conflagration caused, we see its imprint it left on society whenever we see someone at work. This just imprint is one of safety.

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The article "The Factory Girl 's Danger", Written by Miriam Finn Scott, discusses the danger of working in a progressive era factory in a skyscraper typical in the New York area. Referenced in her paper is the tragedy known as The Triangle Factory Fire in which 146 workers, mostly young girls, "were charred bodies heaped up behind doors they had vainly tried to beat down, or were unrecognizable pulp upon the street far below"(10,Scott). Miriam also goes further into detail pertaining to the lives of 2 sisters one of whom was killed in the fire. Her article on the triangle factory fire brought the public 's attention to the atrocious conditions these women worked in, Furthermore, it shined a personal light on what otherwise would just been

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It was later discovered that the fire had probably started when a worker disposed a cigarette or match into a rag bin containing three hundred pounds of thin, oxygen-rich, cotton fabric. It was also estimated that there was a total of more than one ton of those cotton scraps in the upper three floors of the factory. “In that brief span, the fire did more killing than any other workplace disaster in New York City history up to that time, or for ninety years afterward.” It was considered “the worst industrial fire in American history.” The fire was one of the most important and biggest factors in the passing of the Nineteenth Amendment.

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Most of the factories workers were primarily women working to be able to support themselves and help support their families but would often be locked inside of the factory to try and promote better productivity. But after a fire had broken out inside of the factory the locked doors trapped the women inside with nowhere to go. Fire escapes that had been put onto the building were so poorly made that they bended and warped from the heat of the fire burning inside of the building. Some women with now where to go tried jumping out of the building to flee the flames, other attempted to jump from the roof to another building with many not making the jump, with many other burning alive locked inside of the building. In the end there were 123 women and 23 men died in the fire, with some of the women being as young as 14 working inside of the factory.

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One of the main reasons the fire took such a psychological toll on the New Yorkers was because of the workers jumping to there deaths. One witness even remarked the event saying quote 'I know a new sound a terrible sound the sound of a body hitting the pavement". The inferno was also not an uncommon occurrence the triangle shirt was burned before the tragedy to collect insurance money. Knowing this information, many Jewish and women workers went on strike to secure improved working conditions. There strike in fact proved successful with the New York state legislature creating the Factory Investigating Commission.

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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.

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The Triangle Shirtwaist Fire was a devastating fire that killed 146 girls in New York City (Leap for Life, Leap for Death). At this time, citizens of New York were furious and demanded that the government do something to prevent future tragedies. The government responded and the reforms that the government made, it changed the future of New York industry. The Triangle Shirtwaist Fire, one of history’s deadliest fires, came as a result of outrageously unsafe working conditions, led to a high death toll and injury total, but, ultimately resulted in reforms that helped safeguard future factory workers.

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In addition, the fire also had a lasting impact on the insurance industry. Companies began to recognize the need for employers’ liability insurance to cover the costs of workplace accidents (McEvoy, 1995). As a result, new policies were introduced to protect both employers and employees in the event of an injury. The lasting impact of the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire is clear; it led to the establishment of laws that protect workers and the introduction of insurance policies that provide compensation for workplace

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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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