University of Massachusetts Amherst ScholarWorks@UMass Amherst Doctoral Dissertations 1896 - February 2014 1-1-1996 The Triangle fire and the limits of progressivism. Frances B. Jensen University of Massachusetts Amherst Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.umass.edu/dissertations_1 Recommended Citation Jensen, Frances B., "The Triangle fire and the limits of progressivism." (1996). Doctoral Dissertations 1896 - February 2014. 1230. https://scholarworks.umass.edu/dissertations_1/1230 This Open Access Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by ScholarWorks@UMass Amherst. It has been accepted for inclusion in Doctoral Dissertations 1896 - February 2014 by an authorized administrator of ScholarWorks@UMass Amherst. For more information, please contact [email protected]. THE TRIANGLE FIRE AND THE LIMITS OF PROGRESSIVISM A Dissertation Presented by FRANCES B. JENSEN Submitted to the Graduate School of the University of Massachusetts Amherst in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY May 1996 Department of History Q Copyright by Frances B. Jensen 1996 All Rights Reserved THE TRIANGLE FIRE AND THE LIMITS OF PROGRESSIVISM A Dissertation Presented By FRANCES B. JENSEN Approved as to style and content by. Gerald W. McFarland, Chair Bruce Laurie , Member David Glassberg, Membe: Dean MJang ^X^^^^Met^be r Bruce Laurie, Department Head History . ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I am grateful to many people who have encouraged and assisted me during the preparation of this dissertation. My colleagues at Elms College were a source of support to me during the past several years and frequently boosted my flagging spirits on dark day. Members of my dissertation committee were cooperative, helpful, and encouraging. I owe a deep debt of gratitude to the chairman of my committee, Gerald McFarland. Without his encouragement, his patience, and his guidance at each stage of my doctoral studies, I would never have been able to complete the degree requirements . Furthermore , his example as a scholar and a teacher will always be an inspiration to me. I also wish to acknowledge the debt that I owe my late parents. From my mother, Filomena Anna Giordano, I learned firsthand about life in an immigrant family . My father, Charles Harris Brewer, was a working-man who took great pride in his union affiliation and left his daughter with an appreciation for the efforts of organized labor. I trust that this dissertation reflects in some measure their legacy to me. I owe my greatest debt to my husband, Ted Jensen, He has always been there for me, even during the times when my work most upset our once tranquil family existence. I acknowledge all his help and support with love and gratitude iv . ABSTRACT THE TRIANGLE FIRE AND THE LIMITS OF PROGRESSIVISM MAY 1996 FRANCES B. JENSEN, B.A., WESTFIELD STATE COLLEGE M.A., UNIVERSITY OF CONNECTICUT Ph.D., UNIVERSITY OF MASSACHUSETTS AMHERST Directed by: Professor Gerald W. McFarland One hundred and forty- six women, most of them young immigrants, died in the fire at the Triangle Shirtwaist Company in New York City's Lower East Side on March 25, 1911. One of the worst industrial disasters in the history of the United States, it confirmed the belief of progressives that unregulated industrialism had gone awry. This tragedy, however, have rise to a campaign for protective labor legislation in the Empire State and provided historians with an example of the reform impulse in the years prior to World War I This dissertation makes the case, both implicitly and explicitly, that this disaster, if examined in both a social and a political context, can be used to increase our understanding of three broad aspects of the history and historiography of the progressive era. First, it can help us to evaluate the debate among historians over the true extent and effectiveness of the reform movement. Secondly, it will help us examine how coalitions of united to diverse and incompatible groups temporarily V . demand reform legislation, and finally it can allow us to interweave many histories of the era- -the immigrant experience, American radicalism, trade unionism, the suffrage movement, and progressive reform- -that formerly have been analyzed as separate stories. The idea of limitations is emphasized in each of the dissertation's predominate themes. The reform initiative, in terms of both its liberalism and the effectiveness of the legislation it produced were limited. Furthermore, the degree of cooperation generated by the reform coalition that responded to the Triangle Fire was temporary and produced few enduring associations. The ongoing historical debate regarding the meaning and the results of progressivism has produced extensive but incoherent opinions which call for further scholarly clarification. This dissertation not only provides a framework for further analyzing the events surrounding the Triangle Fire, it also produces additional information about progressivism- -its membership, its goals, its achievements, and the political and social environment which produced the movement vi TABLE OF CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGMENTS iv ABSTRACT v Chapter ^ I. THE TRIANGLE FIRE AND THE HISTORIANS. 1 II. THE GARMENT INDUSTRY AND THE WOMEN WHO LABORED IN IT 10 III. THE SHIRTWAIST INDUSTRY: THE EMPLOYERS. 36 IV. THE WORKERS AND THEIR ALLIES ^ 74 V. CONFRONTATION AND TRAGEDY 117 VI. THE AFTERMATH OF THE TRIANGLE FIRE: LOCAL CALLS FOR REFORM 160 VII. STATE INDUSTRIAL REFORM AFTER THE TRIANGLE FIRE 194 VIII. THE FAILURE OF THE ENFORCEMENT OF PROGRESSIVE LABOR LEGISLATION 236 IX. EPILOGUE 268 APPENDICES PLAN OF NINTH FLOOR 280 , A. B. A RECORD OF FINES IMPOSED ON FACTORY OWNERS CONVICTED OF LABOR LAW VIOLATIONS IN THE YEARS BETWEEN 1914-1915 AND 1917-1918 281 BIBLIOGRAPHY 282 vii . CHAPTER I THE TRIANGLE FIRE AND THE HISTORIANS The flames that swept through the Triangle Shirtwaist Company in New York City on March 25, 1911, left 146 workers dead, most of them young immigrant women. This event was surely one of the worst industrial disasters in the history of the United States. At the time, it confirmed progressive Americans' belief that rampant industrialism had gone awry. It has since furnished historians with evidence of the adverse effects that rapid and unregulated industrialization had on workers. The tragedy at the Triangle company has also stimulated scholarly interest because it gave rise to a noteworthy campaign for regulatory legislation in New York State. That state's accomplishments ushered in an era of protective labor legislation that served as a model for similar efforts in other states. It also provides scholars with an example of the progressive reform impulse that reached its peak in the first decade of the twentieth century The historian, however, has purposes beyond simply retelling the story of the Triangle Fire and the program of reform that it inspired. Indeed, this dissertation will make the case, both implicitly and explicitly, that the Triangle Shirtwaist Fire, if examined in both a social and political context, can be used to increase our understanding of three broad aspects of the history and historiography of the progressive era. Through a study of the Triangle Fire, we can evaluate the debate among historians over the true extent and effectiveness of the reform impulse: we can also examine how coalitions of diverse and incompatible groups -- feminists, working- class women, socialists, conservative trade unionists, and middle-class social reformers -- temporarily united to demand reform legislation during the progressive era: and through a description of circumstances leading to the fire as well as its consequences, we can interweave many histories -- of the immigrant experience, of American radicalism, of trade unionism, of the suffrage movement, of progressive reform -- that is the past have often been treated as separate stories. The compelling nature of the Triangle tragedy tended to arrest interpretation of the event at a point that modern historians of the progressive era have long considered to be suspect. The usual historical treatment of the fire and its aftermath considered the wretched circumstances that industrial workers were forced to endure, the tragic results those conditions had on the lives of the immigrant laborers, and the successful efforts of progressive reformers to eliminate or, at least, ameliorate the evils that resulted from industrialization.^ However, this interpretation of progressivism as a victory of liberal reformers was questioned by scholars as early as the 1950' s. Both 2 Richard Hofstadter in his Age of Reform (1955) and Gabriel Kolko in his Triumph of Conservatism (1963) directed attention to the conservative aspects of progressivism and suggested that progressive reforms were neither really liberal nor really effective in attacking the inequities that threatened American democracy in the first decades of the present century.^ The Hofstadter and Kolko books stimulated other historians to reexamine the progressive era reforms and to reevaluate the effectiveness of the broad reform crusade that was a hallmark of that period. A similar reconsideration of the Triangle Fire and its results, one that considers and explains the often timid response of radicals, union leaders, politicians, and middle-class reformers, should be attempted and is, in fact, long past due . When Richard Hofstadter challenged the older liberal school of progressive historiography, he provoked a spirited debate about the origins and the nature