The Brown Building
THE BROWN BUILDING
THIS TEN-STORY NEO-RENAISSANCE LOFT BUILDING, DESIGNED BY
NEW YORK ARCHITECT JOHN WOOLLEY, WAS BUILT IN 1900-01 FOR
JOSEPH J. ASCH. THE TRIANGLE SHIRTWAIST FACTORY OCCUPIED
THE BUILDING'S TOP THREE FLOORS. IN 1909, TRIANGLE EMPLOYEES
INITIATED THE FIRST LARGE-SCALE STRIKE OF WOMEN WORKERS IN
THE COUNTRY, BUT WORKERS' DEMANDS FOR INCREASED FIRE
SAFETY WERE NOT MET. ON MARCH 25, 1911, A FIRE SWEPT THROUGH
THE FACTORY, CLAIMING THE LIVES OF 146 GARMENT WORKERS.
PROMPTED BY THE OUTRAGE OF REFORMERS AND LABOR UNIONS,
NOTABLY THE ILGWU, NEW YORK STATE ENACTED LEGISLATION TO
SAFEGUARD THE HEALTH AND SAFETY OF WORKERS. THESE LAWS
SUBSEQUENTLY SERVED AS MODELS FOR NATIONAL LABOR AND
SAFETY REFORMS. THE BUILDING FACADE WAS LARGELY
UNDAMAGED BY THE FIRE. IN 1929 FREDERICK BROWN DONATED THE
BUILDING TO NEW YORK UNIVERSITY, WHICH NAMED IT IN HIS
HONOR, AND HAS USED IT EVER SINCE AS AN ACADEMIC BUILDING.
NEW YORK LANDMARKS PRESERVATION FOUNDATION
2003
Submitted by: Andrew Henninger