The Triangle Shirtwaist Factory The Triangle Shirtwaist Factory was located at the corner of Greene Street and Washington Place in New York City in 1911. http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/07/Triangle_Shirtwaist_Factory_fire_building.jpg

What is a shirtwaist? “A popular fashion item of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, the shirtwaist blouse was regarded as the model shirt for the independent, working woman. A button-down blouse, the functional shirtwaist was valued for its ready-to-wear, workplace appeal and its simple design, originally modeled on menswear shirts. It could be worn jacketless and fashionably tucked into the waistband of a skirt, and it was sold as both an individual piece and as an ensemble. By the early 20th century, designers added lace and frills to embellish the iconic blouse, which was already available in every color.” http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/general-article/triangle-shirtwaist/

Owners of the Triangle shirtwaist factory Max Blanck and Isaac Harris

Working Conditions Blanck and Harris had five hundred workers at the Washington Place location. Most were female immigrants from Russia, Italy and Germany who were as young as fourteen years old. The workers often spent eight to twelve hours a day and six days a week at the factory. Workers were paid different wages for the same work and they had no control over this. Marsico, Katie. The Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire: Its Legacy of Labor Rights. New York: Marshall Cavendish Benchmark, 2010. Print.

The Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire “Near closing time on Saturday afternoon, March 25, 1911, a fire broke out on the top floors of the Asch Building in the Triangle Waist Company. Within minutes, the quiet spring afternoon erupted into madness, a terrifying moment in time, disrupting forever the lives of young workers. By the time the fire was over, 146 of the 500 employees had died.” http://www.ilr.cornell.edu/trianglefire/primary/photosIllustrations/slideshow.html?image_id=746&sec_id=3#screen

Response to fire After the fire, the public response was intense. Workers protested the conditions of the factory including that there were little precautions against fire and there were inadequate exits for employees. Mourners carry a bunting-draped banner in the pouring rain during the six hour procession April 5, 1911 to honor victims of the Triangle fire. Photographer: New York Tribune, April 5, 1911 Kheel Center image identifier: 5780pb39f18c