The Triangle Shirtwaist Factory was located in Washington Square Park. The area used to be a wealthy neighborhood called “the Row,” featuring “elegant townhouses,” but over the course of the city’s development, it changed to “a green oasis amid grimy factories and immigrant neighborhoods” (2). Marrin highlights Miss Francis Perkins, a key figure in the movement for workers’ rights and improved work conditions. Perkins and some friends were in the neighborhood and rushed to the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory when the fire broke out. The senseless loss of life profoundly affected Perkins and her friends.

The Triangle fire took place during a time of mass immigration to the United States. This coincided with the United States’ rise as a wealthy nation, but few immigrants were able to make their dreams of fortune a reality due to inhumane working conditions and pitifully low wages. The Triangle fire happened during a time when workplace health and safety were serious topics of discussion. The tragedy brought important questions about labor and humanity to the forefront.

The history of immigration to the United States is divided into two categories: old and new. Old immigration took place during the pre-independence colonial era and consisted mostly of people from Western and Northern Europe.