The Factory Girls: A Kaleidoscopic Account of the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire

by Christine Seifert

The twentieth century ushered in a new world filled with a dazzling array of consumer goods. Even the poorest immigrant girls could afford a blouse or two. But these same immigrant teens toiled away in factories in appalling working conditions. Their hard work and sacrifice lined the pockets of greedy factory owners who were almost exclusively white men. The tragic Triangle Waist Factory fire in 1911 resulted in the deaths of over a hundred young people, mostly immigrant girls, who were locked in the factory.



Told from the perspective of six young women who lived the story, this book reminds us why what we buy and how we vote really matter.

Genres: Nonfiction, History, 20th Century, Middle Grade, Historical, American History

176 pages, Kindle Edition

First published March 30, 2017

About the author

I'm a fan of taking long walks on sunny days, browsing through the library on Saturday afternoons, and eating popcorn for lunch. I am a native North Dakotan, a professor at Westminster College in Salt Lake City, Utah, and author of some books: Factory Girls (YA nonfiction, 2017 Zest); Whoppers: History's Most Outrageous Lies and Liars (YA nonfiction, 2015, Zest); Virginity in Young Adult Literature After Twilight (nonfiction/scholarship, 2015, Scarecrow); and The Predicteds (YA fiction, 2011 Sourcebooks Fire). I'm represented by Alyssa Eisner Henkin of Trident Media Group. When I'm not writing or teaching writing, I'm an avid reader and an enthusiastic listener of podcasts (especially podcasts about books). I hate golf, avalanches, and bees.

https://ladyprofessorreads.com/

https://www.facebook.com/#!/TeamChris...

Reviews

[Kelly]

This YA nonfiction read is well-organized and crafted and offers insight not only into the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory disaster -- something YA has a couple of nonfiction titles covering -- but it also looks at the political, social, and economical factors at the time which contributed to it. It really is a kaleidoscopic account and gave some fascinating insight into the ways young girls protested for fair labor, the way certain rich women helped support these girls, and even why it was that the shirtwaist became such high fashion.

But what took this from being good to being quite good is that Seifert absolutely addresses race here. She notes more than once, and in a section dedicated to it, that racism was abound and that the bulk of the story here focuses on working class white women...and why that's the case. It's a nice balance, given that she spends a good amount of time talking, too, about Russian Jewish girls who were a good swath of the factory workers; these identities are all named and discussed. There was one part where Seifert mentions that young Cuban girls in Florida working in cigar factories having it far worse than the girls in NYC had it and now I really hope that there's a YA book that explores life as a young Cuban girl in Florida during this time of industrialization and growing wealth gaps.

Great for readers who like history, who are interested in girls doing things and being given credit for it, as well as those who want more insight into one of the worst tragedies in American history. This would pair well with FLESH AND BLOOD SO CHEAP, THREADS AND FLAMES, and AUDACITY -- there is a nice section here about Clara Lemlich.

My only minor complaint is, at times, the author's asides get annoying, rather than come off as clever as she hoped they would. But those are few and far between.

[Shelby · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is one of the better YA nonfiction books I’ve read. It was really quite good. I personally got very skimmy the last 4 chapters. I don’t think that’s the books fault, I think it’s mine. I was going to write a big review for this too, but my will gave out. I’m so sorry. I really liked how she painted a big picture of all the different cultural factors in American society and the world at large which lead to the fire. Summary: capitalism is 🎶the wooooorst🎶 when she mentioned the ‘insult to injury’ of workers getting searched on their way out because owners feared stealing that really brought me back to my days working at Hollister and getting my bag searched every night. Love that for us.

[Samantha Glasser]

The writing style is conversational. “In 1901, Floradora was the biggest musical of all time. Think Hamilton without the hip hop.” The author assumes you know nothing about the fire or the time period and sometimes she calls attention to your ignorance which gets tedious. However her facts aren’t always right, like in regard to Evelyn Nesbit and her relationship with Stanford White.

Each section is short and succinct. The storytelling is exciting and readable.

[Anita Boeira · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a hard book to read, but so interesting on its multi faceted approach of telling the history of the triangle shirtwaist factory. Reading about those people lives without making connections to the world right now, is impossible. I always appreciate how Seifert expands on difficult conversations, and I really enjoyed this book. My favorite so far!

And also a shout out to her publisher for picking such an awesome designer to layout the book and the cover. It's gorgeous.

[Esther Kotyk · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Factory Girls, written by Christine Seifert tells of the terrible fire that took place in The Triangle Shirtwaist Factory in 1911. She looks into the lives of five brave women that fought to survive the fire and truly gives a kaleidoscope into the political, social, and economic factors that led up to the fire. Seifert gives insight to the lives of the working class citizens, the bold girls that protested for fair labor, and even the wealthy women who supported the protests during the Gilded Age, the late nineteenth century in America.
The societal atmosphere before the fire and throughout the Gilded Age is unlike America today and Seifert does an exceptional job depicting the struggles of that period. Seifert explains that life for immigrants coming to America was extremely difficult. Many immigrants found jobs in factories that made the owners rich at the expense of their employees. Seifert includes a quote that describes the harsh life for immigrants, “I came to America because I heard the streets were paved with gold. When I got here, I found out three things: First, the streets weren’t paved with gold; second, they weren’t paved at all; and third, I was expected to pave them” (65). In the Gilded Age, immigrant expectation was that they would do the jobs others refuse, including factory labor. Factory conditions were miserable, as owners slowed their clocks so their employees would have to stay longer with no pay. Seifert does a remarkable job giving insights into how the women of that time responded to these hardships by telling their stories.
Overall, The Factory Girls by Christine Seifert was an interesting book. At times, the book was hard to read, not because of difficult vocabulary, but because of the graphic detail. Seifert describes the only ways that the girls were able to get out of the building, one being a nine-story fall from the windows. Seifert puts you into their shoes and the panic they felt. The book is thought provoking and emotional, but has a good balance of facts. Seifert writes in a way that kept you following along and captivated. One of the few downsides to her writing style is that it has bias in order to have an impact on the reader. Factory owners, among other people in government positions, are negatively described as Seifert only mentions them when they are blamed for the fire. Despite this, I enjoyed reading The Factory Girls and would read it again. I would recommend this book to anyone who has a desire to learn about American history or wants to learn about the women that shaped our past.

[Maureen · Rating 2 out of 5]

I wanted to like this, but I can't. The changes in gear between very detailed history of the fire and super-basic explanations about racism and xenophobia (including "introducing" readers to the literal word xenophobia) was extremely jarring (That's partly my fault because I picked it up not realizing it was YA, but I can't imagine I would have liked the patronizing tone as a teen either). Plus, there were enough errors in the contextual material that I'm questioning the accuracy of the sections about the actual fire.

1. Lydia Pinkham was absolutely a real person and the founder of the company for which she was the public face. To say that the fact that she didn't personally respond to her fan mail means she doesn't exist would be like saying my Senator doesn't exist because I got a letter that purports to be from him but which he didn't personally write.

2. Holding up Andrew Carnegie as an example of a philanthropist businessman in contrast to the owners of the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory was absurd. Carnegie began giving away his fortune in his 60s, after the Johnstown flood and the 1892 Homestead Strike made him one of the nation's infamous examples of rapacious capitalism. Sure, he gave money away when he decided to rehabilitate his image, but he was a terrible employer (and a pretty awful neighbor if you lived downstream).

3. This one isn't a error, so much as an omission, but it's absurd so.... Why mention that a social worker named Frances Perkins saw the fire and was deeply affected by it if you're not going to mention that Frances Perkins was a professional labor rights agitator who went on to be FDR's Secretary of Labor and design and implement the New Deal?

4. The author goes on and on about the indignity and hardship of 4 hours of processing at Ellis Island and how nerve-wracking it must have been for people, but never mentions that the approval rate was about 98%. (she also doesn't mention Angel Island, its counterpart in California where immigrants were processed. Angel Island held people for weeks to months and had much lower approval rates)

5. Lebron James is not 8 ft 2in tall. If you stacked 3 LeBrons on top of each other, they would not form a LeBron tower of anything close to 25 ft. (page 71)

There were more, but those are the ones I still remember by the end of the book.

[Michaela Gulledge · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book The Factory Girls: A Kaleidoscopic Account of the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire By Chrstine Seifert. This isn’t a book I would normally pick up and read but I decided to try it out. Once I picked the book up I wondered how good the book could be because when I learned about the Triangle shirtwaist fire I didn’t find it very interesting but when I read this book I was very intrigued. I think this book is very good at keeping the readers interested and still talking about the tragic incident that occurred.

This book is about the horrific fire that took place in 1911. This book mainly focuses on the perspectives of five main characters who all happen to be females. The book does a good job of telling how each female is different and how each of their days before they went to work were similar. The book also talks about how this event changed the USA forever and how it affects us to this day.

“The far more complicated answer is that America made a series of choices about labor, production, workplace safety, immigration, fashion, consumerism, and economics. Sometimes those choices were small, so small that Americans didn’t know they were making a choice at all. But all those choices led to the conditions inside the triangle shirtwaist factory on March 25, 1911.”(Seifert pg. 157). I chose this quote because it shows how much the people of America still had to learn at the time of this incident. But it also shows the importance of this event and book because now us Americans can realize when we really need to pay attention and how our choices and actions can affect our day to day lives.

I think that this book is a really good book for two reasons. One is very information on what happened in the past and tells you about the history of the USA. Second, it also has a good way of keeping the reader interested throughout most of the book. I only got bored of the book for a little bit but then a few pages later I was very interested again. Some books that people should read if they found this book pleasurable to read are Things fall apart by Chinua Achebe, Solito by Javier Zamora and Interpreter of maladies by Jhumpa Lahiri.

[Dorian Cruz · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Factory Girls is a book I'm conflicted on. So Christine Seifert has written 9 other major titles most of which are also Non-fiction. The Factory girls was published in 2017, and its publisher is a company called Zest. While this book says its a "Kaleidoscopic Account of the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire" but it feels more like a brief look into the Triangle fire, and then what being an immigrant working in a factory was like. I did like learning about about that, but I wanted to know more about the Triangle Fire. I think this line is an example of what I didn't like while I was reading this "Mrs. Stuyvesant Fish threw a birthday party for her dog and gifted it a $15,000 diamond collar; she also allegedly threw a dinner (party-"party" was forgotten) in honor of a monkey who wore a suit to the festivities... An entire medical diagnosis emerged to explain the mental state of the super rich. George M. Beard called it Neurasthenia..." as interesting as that was I just want to know more about the Triangle fire, I didn't pick up this book to see what rich people were doing at the time. Other than the focus not actually really being on the Triangle factory for a majority of the book, all the information is sound. The sources seem to be credible and the book shows photos for evidence when talking about certain things. I think about 4 chapters in this 11 chapter book are about the Triangle Fire, and the people who lived, died, and had to fix the aftermath. I did like it, but I was wanting a very in depth look at the Triangle fire and it's not what I got. If you like history and learning about all the crazy things that happened in the time around 1911 you will probably like it. If you want to know specifics about the actual Triangle Fire you wont be happy. Its a short enough read being only 165 pages. The Pictures and illustrations are great, the style of the pages is appealing, and its not ever boring. The main focus was The Triangle factory, but too much stuff that is too loosely connected to the Factory is included for me to give it a higher rating.

[Ella Foy · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is not entirely about the fire, but more so the environment in society that allowed the fire to happen. It is repetitive and at moments falls flat due to the information in chapters being irrelevant to the fire. It is a good book for someone who has never learned about the fire or is curious to know more about that time period, but not necessarily for anyone who is trying to get a full in depth understanding of the fire itself. The book has great information about immigration, power imbalances, fights for workers rights, and child labor- but even in the moments where the book was focused on the fire, there were inconsistencies or just constant repetition of facts and ideas that ended up feeling meaningless. Along with that, the book claims to be told through the lens of 5 women who worked there, but in reality the women are only talked about for roughly 15% of the book. While I did enjoy reading about workers' lives and understanding how girls reacted to the fire (especially based on their age and where they were located) it was nowhere near the main focus of the book. The author does a good job at reiterating the fact that most of the workers were under the age of 18 and given no other choice but to work in these conditions- which also highlights the fact that a tragedy like this was going to happen no matter what. Overall, if you are willing to look past the additional information, inconsistencies in the story, and the YA tone of the text, then this book is a good way to get more information on the fire. However, if you are looking for a book that goes into in- depth detail on the fire and the outcomes of it, I would recommend looking for another book.

[Alicia · Rating 3 out of 5]

Seifert's book covers it all in a short amount of time. Not only does she profile a handful of girls who either lived or died in the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire but discusses political action, the court case involving the two owners, the dawn of factory work and in that ready-to-wear clothing, immigration, unions, corruption, and contemporary stories that provide examples that history continues to repeat itself. There is much to learn and much to digest in this slim volume. But I learned quite a few things including the inner-workings of factory life, shirtwaists themselves, and the dirty politics of industrial work and capitalism.

"In 1892 a man by the name of Francis Bellamy penned a short verse that you might know. (In fact, you probably know it by heart.) That little verse was what Americans now know as "The Pledge of Allegiance." It was written for and delivered at the 1892 Columbus Day celebration, a massive fete that celebrated Columbus' arrival. We now recognize that Columbus is not the hero we imagined... But at the time, Columbus was a celebrated man, and Bellamy's "Pledge of Allegiance" created solidarity among Americans. It suggested that (in theory, anyway) all Americans were equal citizens, regardless of birth or circumstances."

"Bessie Gabrilowich... Bessie lived to be a whopping 107 years old. She died in 1999, one of the very last Triangle survivors who were still around. Through all the years she drew breath, the girls of the Triangle survived in Bessie's heart."

[Daniel Loendorf · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was a decent book. The beginning talks about the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire. It was a fire that began on the 8th floor from a lit cigarette that was thrown in the trash. It killed about 145 workers most of them being women. Most of the women were immigrants coming from all around the world looking to start a new life in America. They were looking for a job and the Shirtwaist Factory was a good starting job. The factory conditions were very bad. The owners treated the workers with no respect. Sometimes if a girl asked for more hours or a raise they would immediately get fired. Some owners would speed up the clock so the workers would have shorter breaks and slow the clock ate the end of the day so the workers would have to stay longer with no extra pay. The worst part about the factory was that it was fabric factory that was highly flammable with only 4 elevators and not very many fire exits. When the fire started the 9th floor which was the most flammable was not contacted, but the 10th floor was. The 9th floor didn't realize that there was a fire until it reached the floor. The 9th floor burned in little as 5 minutes. Women panicked because the exits were locked up so none of them walked out with stolen merchandise. They bunched up at doors and could not get out so they either got burned or decided to jump out the window. It was one of the worst American tragedies and it changed America forever. I would recommend this book to people who are interested in American disasters or American history.

[Harper · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 stars!

I remember studying the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire way back in the fifth or sixth grade. It's stuck with me since then, so I snapped this up off the shelf at my library right away to learn more about it. I really enjoyed Seifert's contemporary, conversational tone; it felt like a close friend was sitting me down and telling me the story directly. Her dedication and care into this topic is palpable on the page.

I also appreciated the insight into how class, xenophobia, and gender all played into this tragedy. She also took the time to point out how women of color worked in even more dangerous conditions than the largely white Triangle workers did, which kept the discussion on class and violence from feeling too whitewashed.

A really interesting piece of academic work! I'm glad I picked this up.

[Kristi · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a decent nonfiction look at the Triangle fire for younger teens. It's written in a very slangy contemporary style which might not hold up well in a few years, and it's unfortunately plagued by typos that should have been caught by an editor, but the information is well organized and presented in a way that holds your attention. I would probably direct older teens or those with stronger reading skills to one of the Triangle histories published for adults if they have interest in this area.

[Emi Suarez · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book reads like an essay I would have written in high school. Informative, but simple. Incredibly redundant at times. Patronizing. I found the covers to be misleading - this book is approximately 20% about the highlighted girls and 80% about the conditions and history in America that led to this moment. The intended audience seems to be middle or high schoolers, which I didn’t realize until I began reading. It wins two stars for me for its agenda - informing readers about the conditions that caused this tragedy, and how we can behave better as consumers today.

[Kristen · Rating 4 out of 5]

The author did a fantastic job at describing the political and societal atmosphere before, during,and after the fire. I went in strictly wondering what the lives of the workers of the factory consisted of . By the end I felt I had a full picture of life and, society in America around the time of the tragedy. My only critique is I wanted to know even more about the particular women activists, survivors and victims mentioned. Overall a fascinating read.

[Mrs. · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting from beginning to end! I'm impressed by the workers' resilience and fighting spirit. Nice to pair with Audacity by Melanie Crowder; Lost by Jacqueline Davies; A Tree Grows in Brooklyn; The Jungle by Uptown Sinclair.... Includes realistic ideas on what the reader can do to affect change in the world of clothing manufacturing.

[Annie Oosterwyk · Rating 5 out of 5]

The story of the labor movement during the early 1900s and how the Triangle Shirtwaist Fire affected change. The author shows the reader how today’s labor climate in many ways echoes the time just prior to the fire and provides ways consumers can use their buying power to also affect change, hopefully without a comparable tragedy.
Super list of resources at the end of the book.

[Amy · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a really strong middle grade history. The writing style is very contemporary, so it may not age well in sections. The references and the bibliography are solid, so the book would do really well for a history unit.

For the causal reader it was a great refresh on a period in History that's really flown over.

[Jamie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good insight into the fire and factory workers of the time. Author is very opinionated about religion, and politics of the time and that shows throughout the book. Overall I enjoyed the book and learned a great deal about the fire and the young girls who worked for the factories.

[Kerri · Rating 3 out of 5]

The title was a bit misleading, the actual factory girls were a small percentage of the book. By trying to explain how it could happen and why it still happens the author perhaps bit off more than she could chew and digressed into the didactic.

[Kimber Buelow- 561 Bookgirl · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fascinating and shameful period in time, told in a clear, constructive, and understandable manner. By giving voice to the girls while explaining the political and business backdrop, the author has made the scene come to life and to create parallels to today's world.

[Lee L · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lots of interesting background info. on way the times were like around the time of the fire.

[Jenna · Rating 3 out of 5]

Decent, maybe a little condescedning/dumbed down to the reader at times. A quick read.

[Valencia · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was good and very informative, but I wish it had talked more about the girls themselves and their lives. I really enjoy reading about the girls during this time period.

[Yvonne Crawford · Rating 5 out of 5]

True story on a factory fire, in America in 1911 where they shirtwaist, and 411 people died

[Kelly · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic YA nonfiction. It explains the socioeconomic conditions of NYC at the turn of the century in a way that is very easy for students to understand.

[Hope · Rating 5 out of 5]

yeehaw triangle shirtwaist fire

[Dawn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wow! Powerful look at a tragic event. I've read historical fiction accounts about the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire, but never a non-fiction account. This book was well-done. I liked reading about the event from the different accounts, and the way that the author wrote, this book was clearly well-researched. This is a must-read for students who are interested in factory work, life in the late 1800s and early 1900s, and those who worked to change factory conditions.

[Maria · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fascinating. There was a lot of information here about the factories, the time period, and the fight for workers' rights.

It's also a great example to show how something nonfiction can have a distinct point of view (very progressive). Sometimes kids think that nonfiction is just "facts" but we need to be able to understand the author's purpose and point of view to truly understand the text. Whether we agree or disagree with the point being made, we need to teach kids to see there IS one there.