Episode 1: The Triangle Shirtwaist Fire – A Tragedy That Changed America

History's Greatest Crimes 🏛️🔪

Episode 1: The Triangle Shirtwaist Fire – A Tragedy That Changed America 🕵️‍♀️🔍

Episode Description:

On March 25, 1911, flames engulfed the upper floors of the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory in New York City. Within minutes, 146 garment workers—most of them young immigrant women—were dead. Trapped behind locked doors, with no fire escapes and no way out, they had little chance of survival. Some jumped to their deaths from the ninth floor; the flames consumed others.

But this was more than just a horrific accident—it was a crime. A crime of greed, neglect, and corporate indifference.

In this episode of History’s Greatest Crimes, we examine one of the deadliest industrial disasters in U.S. history and its lasting impact on labor laws, workplace safety, and the fight for workers’ rights⏳📜.

Listen now to uncover the truth! 🎧💡

Hosts: Michael and Alana are professional historians with a passion for bringing the most captivating and often overlooked criminal events of the past to light. ✨

🎙️ What You’ll Discover in This Episode:

🔹 The factory’s working conditions – What life was like for the thousands of young immigrant women who worked at Triangle Shirtwaist, sewing clothes in crowded, dangerous conditions for long hours and low pay.

🔹 The day of the fire – A minute-by-minute account of how the blaze started, why it spread so quickly, and the desperate attempts of workers to escape the inferno.

🔹 Locked doors and unsafe exits – How factory owners Max Blanck and Isaac Harris ignored safety regulations, locking exit doors to prevent theft—and turning the factory into a death trap.

🔹 The public outrage – How the nation reacted to the horror, with mass protests and demands for justice. How the fire ignited a labor movement that pushed for better conditions and workplace safety laws.

🔹 The trial and its outcome – Blanck and Harris were charged with manslaughter, but did they face justice? We explore how the legal system responded and why the verdict left many outraged.

🔹 The fire’s legacy – How this tragedy led to sweeping reforms in labor laws, including fire codes, safety inspections, and workers' rights protections that are still in place today.

🔥 Why This Story Matters

The Triangle Shirtwaist Fire was more than a tragic accident—it was a wake-up call. It exposed the brutal reality of industrial labor in America and forced the government to take action. Over a century later, its lessons still resonate in workplace safety debates, labor rights struggles, and the fight against corporate negligence.

🔔 Listen Now

Tune in to History’s Greatest Crimes as we uncover the heartbreaking details of this disaster, the injustice that followed, and the resilience of those who fought for change.

🎧 Available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, and more.

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