A Long Beach resident spent years creating this memorial

Mary Anne Trasciatti, of Long Beach, director of Hofstra University’s Labor Studies program and president of the Remember the Triangle Fire Coalition, has unveiled a memorial after more than a decade of dedication to honor something from over a century ago.

The memorial stands in remembrance of the 146 garment workers who died in the 1911 Triangle Fire. This vision was finally brought to life and dedicated on Oct. 11.

People can visit the Triangle Memorial in Greenwich Village, located at the original factory building on 23 Washington Pl., corner of Greene Street. Additionally you can visit their website at RememberTheTriangleFire.org.

Trasciatti wants people to remember not just the tragedy, but its significance too. She emphasizes how the reforms following the fire have had long-lasting impacts, benefiting many today. She highlights the sacrifices of working women, which inadvertently led to improvements in working conditions.

“The organization that I am apart of that built this memorial, the Remember the Triangle Fire Coalition, we just felt very strongly that this is an important story and it needs to be told,” Trasciatti said. “There is an annual commemoration of the fire around March 25, but we just felt like there should be something at the site where it happened that tells the story every day so that people who are walking by or who come to look for the building can reflect on what happened, but also be inspired by the way that people took action afterwards.”

She draws a parallel between the past events and modern day challenges faced by workers, citing the memorial as a reminder that people today are still fighting for better working conditions.

Trasciatti’s dedication to the memorial is not just rooted in her profession and passion for change. She holds a personal connection.

Her mother and grandmother were both garment workers. They often spoke of their gratitude for the safety measures put in place, a direct result what happened to “those poor girls at the triangle.”

In 2010, as the 100th anniversary of the fire was approaching, the Triangle Fire Coalition began planning the anniversary event. This led them to the idea of creating a lasting memorial.

Numerous open meetings were held across Manhattan, including the city fire museum, the Eldridge St. Synagogue and John D. Calandra Italian American Institute. They gathered opinions from the general public about what they would want out of the memorial. The consensus was that the memorial should narrate the fire’s story, list the names and ages of those who died and be located at the actual site of the fire.

Since the Triangle Factory Building was owned by NYU, the coalition had to gain their approval, which they did after persistent negotiation for about a year. They came to an agreement in 2012. With NYU’s permission and understanding that the coalition would finance the project, the next step was to get clearance from the Landmarks Preservation Commission due to the building’s landmark status.

To finalize a design, the coalition organized an international design competition. Ernesto Martinez, an architect, managed the competition attracting nearly 200 entries from 30 countries. The winners of the competition were Richard Joon Yoo and Uri Wegman. The Landmarks Commission, the community board and NYU approved the chosen design.

With the design in hand, they initiated fundraising efforts. New York State contributed the initial $1.5 million donation, which was believed to cover the cost. However, upon further inspection of the building, challenges arose.

“It’s an old building and it survived the fire, but it’s kind of quirky. It’s not until you open it up and get into the guts of it, you don’t really know what’s underneath,” Trasciatti explained. “And we realized that the plan we had to attach this memorial to the building was not going to work, so it had some engineering challenges. And we had to redesign, not the memorial itself, but the brackets that were going to hold it to the building, because of course, it had to be up there safely. And that took a lot of time and cost some money. The budget then almost doubled, it ended up being $2.9 million.”

The coalition successfully secured $3 million in funding, with contributions from labor unions, foundations and dedicated individuals passionate about the project. 

Despite a remaining piece yet to be installed, the memorial officially debuted on Oct. 11. Joining Trasciatti and the Coalition were several officials, including U.S. Secretary of Labor Julie Su and Gov. Kathy Hochul.

“This is really important to them, because of the laws that were passed for workplace safety, but also because they are women workers,” Trasciatti said. “And that was great. It also made me feel really good to see all the working people there. SAG-AFTRA were there with their T-shirts and workers at NYU who are organizing unions, the students and adjunct faculty, the clerical staff, and the janitors. They were there. And it was just really great to see lots of different working people there as well.”

The memorial narrates the fire’s story in the languages primarily spoken by the victims: English, Yiddish and Italian. It features a stainless steel ribbon 12 feet above the sidewalk with the names and ages of the 146 victims. As visitors walk alongside, a reflective panel below mirrors these names. Below, testimonies from survivors and eyewitnesses are etched into the panel’s edge.

It stands out as one of the few memorials in the U.S. dedicated solely to workers.

“We need to recognize women more out there and some of these workers, they were 14,” Trasciatti said. “We can never let this happen again. And only way we do is by remembering, and working to keep people safe when they go to work every day.”