BA CONNECT Activity

Impressions of Visit to Triangle Factory Fire Site

Marette Nolan, BA Connect with Global Women’s Studies

On March 4th 2011, I along with my classmates of the Global Women’s Studies programme NUI Galway visited the site of the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire in New York. As I had studied this event in class previously, I was intrigued to find out more about this workplace disaster. Upon visiting the site I felt a sense of sadness, a connection with victims of the fire. I thought that there was a definite sense of tragedy there, even one hundred years on. The two small commemorative plaques on the wall stood one above the other, and that was it. No big statue or big gesture, just two small plaques. This saddened me, after all this was a site on which so many lives were lost. I couldn’t help but think of what the poor women trapped inside must have felt like. I felt a sense of anger towards the Triangle Factory Company who let this happen. It was only a year previous that some 20,000 shirtwaist workers went out on strike, demanding better working conditions. I could not believe Triangle held out against these demands. The exhibition in the Grey Gallery as part of the centenary was engaging and inspiring yet it was also very poignant. Although it was a tragic event, it was an event that sparked a change within the garment industry. One particular thing that I saw which stood out to me was a quote by the International Ladies Garment Workers Union (ILGWU) organiser Pauline Newman. “The way to honour the memory of the dead is to build up a strong and powerful organisation that will prevent such disasters and serve as a monument to the dead, lest we forget!” It was because of this incident that proper legislation was established and enforced and that unions became so important in gaining rights for workers everywhere. The Triangle Factory Fire site reminded me of the importance of sustaining public memory of events like this, remembering the victims and survivors and that preserving first hand accounts and direct memories is vital in gaining knowledge about our past.

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