The Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire which occurred in New York City on March 25, 1911, is considered to be one of the most tragic disasters in the history of American industry. It resulted in the death of 146 garment workers (mostly girls) who either died in the fire or jumped to their deaths. The tragedy exposed the inhumane working conditions which the industrial workers faced after the Industrial Revolution and the callous disregard shown by the factory owners for the workers in pursuit of profits. The Triangle Factory Fire eventually proved to be a turning point in the fight by the sweat shop workers for better working conditions and improved factory safety standards. This research paper about the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire examines the background of the incident, describes the event in detail and discusses its aftermath.

             Background.

             The United States was in the midst of the "Second" Industrial Revolution at the beginning of the twentieth century and was experiencing all the benefits and pitfalls of industrialization experienced by Britain about a century ago. There was a major shift of the rural population towards sprawling urban centers. The rising tide of immigrants from Europe added to the growth of the urban centers. As a result, between 1860 and 1900 alone, the number of urban areas in the United States expanded fivefold ("Industrial Revolution," 1997-2005 ). Unlimited greed of factory owners and the desperate need of immigrants for employment gave rise to the proliferation of "sweat shops" around the country in which low-paid immigrants, including women and children, worked for excessively long hours in dangerous and unsafe conditions. The Triangle Shirtwaist Factory, occupying the top three floors of the Asch Building located at the intersection of the Greene Street and Washington Place in New York was one such typical sweat shop. The owners of Triangle, Max Blanck and Isaac Harris, employed mostly young Jewish immigrant girls in their factory and paid them about $ 6 a week for back breaking work on foot powered sewing machines from 7 o'clock in the morning to 8 o'clock at night (Frowne 1977, pp.