The Triangle fire

The Triangle fire



Introduction

The purpose of this study is to expand the boundaries of our knowledge by exploring some relevant facts and figures relating to Jo Ann's “Triangle fire, a Brief History with Documents”. In this paper we will develop main points based on the information we have gained from the book. Moreover, we will also relate our main points to major historical developments of the early 1900s. Jo Ann's volume examines the context, trajectory, and impact of this Progressive event. An introduction explores the demands industrialization placed upon urban working women, their fight to unionize, and the Triangle fire's significance in the greater scope of labor reform. The book also contains documents from the newspapers and the stories of the people who managed to survive from the deadly fire.

Discussion & Analysis

Jo Ann's “Triangle fire examines the event that happened on March 25, 1911, when a fire broke out on the eighth floor of a factory building on the edge of Washington Square in New York City. When workers at the Triangle Shirtwaist Company, which occupied the eighth, ninth, and 10th floors of the building, attempted to douse the flames, they discovered that the fire hoses were rusted through and that a few of the fire exit doors were locked. Some of the workers rushed out onto the fire escape, but the rusted old structure separated from the wall and sent them crashing to their deaths. The firemen's ladders extended only to the sixth floor, so the employees on the eighth and ninth had to leap into nets, but their number was so great that the nets gave way. In the end, 146 people were killed, the great majority, composed of young Jewish and Italian women, recent immigrants from Europe. The last survivor of the fire, Rose Freedman, died in 2001 at the age of 107. She escaped by following the company's executives to the roof, where she was pulled to the roof of an adjoining building. Rose never forgave the owners' refusal to unlock the doors and continued to fight for the rights of workers all her life (Jo Ann, 2009).

"We didn't have a chance ... the people ... saw the fire grow ....all of a sudden the fire was all around...." Someone "ran to the Washington Place door and tried to open it, and when it stayed locked she stood there screaming" (p. 54).

These ...