Why this Greenwich Village corner has 146 names etched into steel above the sidewalk

The Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire

On March 25, 1911, a small fire erupted on the eighth floor of the Asch Building in Greenwich Village.

Within minutes, flames trapped 146 garment workers, mostly young Italian and Jewish immigrant women. Locked doors, blocked exits, and flimsy fire escapes turned a workplace into a death trap.

The tragedy sparked the largest workplace safety overhaul in American history.

Here’s what happened at this corner that changed labor laws forever, now marked by a plaque you can visit in lower Manhattan.

How The Fire Started On The Eighth Floor

A match or cigarette butt set fire to fabric scraps in a rag bin on the 8th floor. The factory floor was covered with flammable materials such as cotton fabric, paper patterns, and wooden tables.

Flames jumped quickly from one worktable to another. A manager tried using the factory fire hose but found it rotted with a rusted valve. Workers on the 8th floor called the 10th floor by telephone to warn them.

No one could alert workers on the 9th floor, where most deaths happened. The fire spread upward in minutes, fed by lint and fabric scraps.

Locked Doors That Trapped Workers Inside

Factory owners Max Blanck and Isaac Harris kept exit doors locked during work hours. They did this to stop workers from taking breaks or stealing materials. The Washington Place stairway door on the 9th floor was locked, trapping many workers.

Only one exit route stayed open, but flames blocked it for many people. Women had to leave the building to use restrooms. Managers locked steel exit doors, and only the foreman had keys.

When the fire started, the foreman with the stairway door key had already escaped. Workers rushed to exits they couldn’t open.

Fire Escapes That Failed During The Emergency

The building had only one fire escape instead of the three required for a factory that size. This lone escape route was made of flimsy iron poorly attached to the building. As workers crowded onto the narrow structure, it twisted and collapsed from their weight and the heat.

About twenty people fell nearly 100 feet to the concrete below. Building plans showed the fire escape reaching the ground, but builders made it end at a second-floor skylight instead.

Jammed Exits And Narrow Stairwells

Stairway doors opened inward because the landings were too narrow for outward-swinging doors. This design became deadly during the emergency. Workers pushed against doors that needed to open toward them.

The crush of bodies made this impossible. Within three minutes, flames blocked the Greene Street stairway in both directions. Long sewing tables arranged in rows stopped people from moving across the floor.

The building had four elevators, but only two worked during the fire. These made just a few trips before breaking down.

Workers Who Jumped To Their Deaths

Trapped workers faced a terrible choice – burn alive or jump from ninth and tenth floor windows. Many chose to jump rather than face the flames. People on the street watched workers leap from windows, sometimes holding hands in groups.

Frances Perkins, who later became Secretary of Labor, saw it happen. Some waited at windows hoping for rescue, only to see firefighters’ ladders reach just the sixth floor. Bodies hit the pavement with such force they damaged the sidewalk.

After the fire, police arranged victims in rows along the street.

Firefighters With Ladders Too Short

Firefighters arrived quickly but couldn’t reach the upper floors. Their tallest ladders only reached the sixth floor of the ten-story building. Water from fire hoses reached only the seventh floor.

The top three floors stayed beyond their reach. Fire Chief John Kenlon later said his department lacked equipment for tall buildings. The fire department still used gear made for a city of shorter structures.

Anyone trapped above the seventh floor had no chance of rescue from outside. The fire lasted just 18 minutes, but without proper equipment, 146 workers died.

Factory Owners Who Escaped Punishment

Police charged factory owners Max Blanck and Isaac Harris with manslaughter after the fire. The court case showed that locked doors caused many deaths. A jury found both men not guilty in December 1911.

They paid only $75 for each victim in a later civil lawsuit. Insurance paid Blanck and Harris $400 per death, meaning they made money from the disaster. Two years later, inspectors caught them locking doors in another factory.

They paid fines for safety violations but faced no criminal punishment for the deaths.

Public Outcry That Demanded Change

Over 100,000 people marched in a funeral procession on April 5, 1911. Another 400,000 lined Fifth Avenue to watch. The anger united labor unions, reformers, and regular citizens.

Public pressure forced politicians to address unsafe factory conditions throughout New York State.

Formation Of The Factory Investigating Commission

New York State created the Factory Investigating Commission on June 30, 1911. State senators Robert Wagner and Alfred Smith led the group with strong legal powers. The commission could force witnesses to testify under oath about work conditions.

They looked beyond garment factories to check safety in all industries across the state. Frances Perkins, who saw the fire firsthand, helped document dangerous conditions.

Investigators visited thousands of workplaces and reported on fire hazards, filth, and other dangers. Their four-year study became the most complete review of factory conditions ever done by a state.

New Laws That Protected Workers

The commission proposed 28 bills in its second year. These laws required factory doors to stay unlocked during work hours. The Sullivan-Hoey Fire Prevention Law, passed in October 1911, created New York City’s Bureau of Fire Prevention.

By 1915, the state passed 36 new laws based on the commission’s work. These laws required sprinklers, fire alarms, and fire drills in factories. They limited hours for women and children, improved building codes, and ordered regular factory inspections.

New York gave its Labor Department more money to enforce these rules, creating the strongest worker protections in America.

Visiting the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire Memorial

You’ll find the Triangle fire memorial at the Brown Building on the corner of Washington Place and Greene Street in Greenwich Village. The building now belongs to New York University.

The Remember the Triangle Fire Coalition hosts annual ceremonies each March 25th with bell-ringing and name-reading.

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