Gothamist
A non-profit newsroom, powered by WNYC.
Gothamist
Listen Live
News
100th Anniversary Of The Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire
By
Jen Chung
Published Mar 25, 2011
Modified Mar 25, 2011
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
Never miss a story
Email address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .
Gothamist
View all 7
By
Jen Chung
Published Mar 25, 2011
Modified Mar 25, 2011
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
We rely on your support to make local news available to all
Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2026. Donate today
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
One hundred years ago today, a fire broke out at the Triangle Waist Factory in the Asch Buliding, a ten-story structure at 29 Washington Place in Greenwich Village. One hundred forty-six workers, many young immigrant women, were killed and today the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire is known as one of the worst industrial disasters in American history. The tragedy also underscored the horrid sweatshop conditions the workers were in—besides being overcrowded, they were locked in their floors and dozens decided to jump out of windows—and helped inspire a fight for better working conditions.
Here's the centennial site commemorating the tragedy, Remember the Triangle Fire. City Room has a look at the "half-hour of horror" of the fire, and the NY Times also has many archival articles about the incident and the company. Cornell also has a website, Remembering the Triangle Factory Fire, complete with a list of victims, interviews with survivors and a model of the 9th floor. And HBO's documentary, Triangle: Remembering the Fire will air on CNN tomorrow night at 11 p.m.
NY State Attorney General Eric Schneiderman wrote in a Daily News editorial today, "The memory of the 146 people who lost their lives in the Triangle Shirtwaist fire stands as a reminder that legal protections and workplace safety standards were won through a long struggle for social justice and at great human cost. Tragically, a century later, many of my colleagues in government seem to have forgotten the lessons of that unspeakable disaster. Over the last decade progress has slowed and, in many states, workers' rights have been seriously weakened.
Tagged
fire
gallery
organized labor
sweatshop
tragedy
Triangle SHirtwaist Factory fire
Triangle Waist Factory
Jen Chung
Jen Chung is a former WNYC and Gothamist editor.
Read more
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
MORE news
Man shot by ICE in NYC's Marble Hill said federal officers never identified themselves
The wounded man said he didn't learn ICE agents were involved until he woke up in the hospital.
By
Arya Sundaram
and
Samantha Max
Published Oct 14, 2026 at 5:26 p.m. ET
Modified Oct 14, 2026 at 6:55 p.m. ET
Brooklyn school dean says MTA officers assaulted him over a $3 bus fare he says he paid
Kyle Taylor, a dean at Mott Bridges Academy, says he made a legal bus transfer.
By
Carol Chen
News
Brooklyn school dean says MTA officers assaulted him over a $3 bus fare he says he paid
Kyle Taylor, a dean at Mott Bridges Academy, says he made a legal bus transfer.
By
Carol Chen
National Grid customers in NYC will see higher gas bills this winter
By
Rosemary Misdary
Bruce Blakeman joins Gov. Hochul in support for expanding NY rape law
By
Jon Campbell
2 men accused of stabbing off-duty NYPD detective in the Bronx plead not guilty
By
Charles Lane
and
Brittany Kriegstein
Never miss a story
Catch up on the most important headlines with a roundup of essential NYC stories, delivered to your inbox daily.
Sign upEmail address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .