Today in History: Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire

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International Ladies’ Garment Workers’ Union Archives, Kheel Center, Cornell University.

Today is the 105th anniversary of the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire, the deadliest industrial disaster in the history of New York City and one of the most gruesome the United States has ever seen.  The fire caused the deaths of 146 garment workers, the majority women, who died from fire, smoke inhalation and jumping to their deaths.  Most of the victims were recent Jewish and Italian immigrant woman, aged 16-23 years old, with two victims being as young as 14.  The factory was located on the 8th and 9th floors of the Asch Building in NYC.  The owners had locked the doors to the stairwells and exits (a then common practice) to prevent both theft and deter workers from taking unauthorized breaks, causing many workers to become trapped in the burning building.  This horrible tragedy led to legislation requiring improved factory safety standards as well as helped to spur the growth of the International Ladies’ Garment Workers’ Union (ILGWU).

Check out the front page of the Brooklyn Daily Eagle from the day following this horrific tragedy:

Brooklyn Daily Eagle. Vol 72. No. 84. March 26, 1911. p. 1.

Bill "Bojangles" Robinson

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1933 Portrait by Carl Van Vechten. Library of Congress.

1933 Portrait by Carl Van Vechten. Library of Congress.

66 years ago today, the great entertainer Bill Robinson died at the age of 71, after breaking down innumerable barriers, and inspiring us all to dance. Born in Richmond, VA, May 25,  1878, Robinson began his dancing career at the age of five, dancing in beer gardens.  At nine, Robinson was hired in a touring troupe to act in minstrel shows, which led him to perform in vaudeville acts and nightclub shows. He also worked as a jockey at the racetrack, but found dancing to be more lucrative than horses. Robinson took a break from performing to serve as a drummer in the Spanish American War.  A legend about the dancer claims he also served in the trenches during World War I, but he would have been 40 at the time and this claim remains unsubstantiated. He did, however, put on free shows for thousands of troops before they shipped out to fight during the latter war; receiving a commendation in 1918 from the War Department. 

Robinson's talent got him noticed by many, and after working steadily for years, and finally at age 50, he made his Broadway debut.  In 1928, Robinson starred in the first African American Broadway show, "Blackbirds of 1928." He then went on to make his film debut in 1930, in a movie called "Dixiana." He then starred in "Harlem is Heaven"--the first movie with an all African American cast ever made. In 1935, the first of his four movies partnering him with Shirley Temple came out; "The Little Colonel." This movie marked the first time an interracial dance team appeared on screen, and Robinson formed a close friendship with his young partner. His last film was "Stormy Weather," a musical based loosely on Robinson's life, and also starring Lena Horne.  Robinson's protagonist was a dancer returning home from World War I to pursue a career performing; likely one of the sources of the myth that Robinson did in fact serve in said war.

1941 Portrait by Carl Van Vechten. Library of Congress.

1941 Portrait by Carl Van Vechten. Library of Congress.

During his lifetime, Bill Robinson faced a lot of criticism that he played into white stereotypes of African Americans. While  Robinson was forced to accept the roles provided for black actors in his time, he fought hard against these stereotypes off the stage and screen--convincing Dallas police department to hire its first African American policemen, lobbying FDR during World War II for more equitable treatment of African American soldiers, and co-founding the New York Black Yankees team in Harlem. Known for his generosity, Robinson performed for free in over 400 benefit shows, and gave away much of his fortune; dying penniless, Ed Sullivan paid for Robinson's funeral. His generosity often extended to his fellow performers, including teaching actors Sammy Davis Jr. and Ann Miller to dance. In 1989, the US Senate declared Robinson's birthday, May 25th, to be National Tap Dance Day.

Yogi-isms

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Yogi Berra, one of baseball's both greatest catchers and characters, passed away yesterday. He was a member of 10 Yankees championship teams as well as a manager to both Yankees and Mets World Series teams. He was also the inspiration for the cartoon character Yogi Bear, and the author of countless witty epigrams now known as Yogi-isms; which the Archive Gals can’t get enough of. Here are some of our favorites:

-“It ain’t over till it’s over.”
-“It’s deja vu all over again.”
-“I usually take a two-hour nap from 1 to 4.”
-“Never answer an anonymous letter.”
-“We made too many wrong mistakes.”
-“You can observe a lot by watching.”
-“The future ain’t what it used to be.”
“If you don’t know where you are going, you might wind up someplace else.”
-“It gets late early out here.”
-“If the people don’t want to come out to the ballpark, nobody’s going to stop them.”
-“Baseball is 90 percent mental. The other half is physical.”
-“Pair up in threes.”
-“Why buy good luggage, you only use it when you travel.”
-“Nobody goes there anymore. It’s too crowded.”
-“All pitchers are liars or crybabies.”
-“A nickel ain’t worth a dime anymore.”
-“He hits from both sides of the plate. He’s amphibious.”
-“I always thought that record would stand until it was broken.”
-“I’m not going to buy my kids an encyclopedia. Let them walk to school like I did.”
-“In baseball, you don’t know nothing.”
-“I never said most of the things I said.”
-“It ain’t the heat, it’s the humility.”
-“The towels were so thick there I could hardly close my suitcase.”
-“You should always go to other people’s funerals, otherwise, they won’t come to yours.”

RIP Yogi! You will be greatly missed.

 
“If you come to a fork in the road, take it.”
— Yogi Berra

Women's Equality Day

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Happy Women's Equality Day, friends! Today in 1920, the 19th Amendment was certified as law, and finally granted women the right to vote in America. A big thanks to all our fore-mothers who fought hard to give us our say! To celebrate, we have been listening to our favorite song about women's suffrage on repeat; even though Mrs. Banks was singing about English women's suffrage (all women's suffrage is important, and sadly still a fight in many places in the world).

POW!!

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The Archive Gals are big fans of the TV show Drunk History; it combines some of our favorite pastimes (and if anyone has any connections, the Gals would make for some really excellent narrators- some possible topics they excel at include Lincoln, Custer, the Roosevelts, the Vanderbilts, Pocahontas- come audition them on 9th Street at happy hour on Thursdays). 

One of our favorite episodes told the story of how the Superman radio show was used to broadcast the secrets of the KKK and fight their resurgence following World War II. Read more here about Stetson Kennedy, the man who infiltrated this evil empire and passed their secrets on to the Man of Steel, plus listen to some of the original audio!