This is a masterful book--meticulously researched and beautifully written--I felt immersed in 1910s New York.
Von Drehle used the trial transcript of People of New York v. Issac Harris and Max Blanck--the owners of the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory--for the harrowing details of the fire. The transcript had been thought to be lost, but a copy belonging to the defense attorney Max Steuer was found in the private library of the New York County Lawyers' Association. Other sources included newspapers, periodicals, biographies, histories, novels, and unpublished dissertations.
Von Drehle's detailed research extends to immigration history, tenement life, economics, unions, and political factions from Tammany Hall to liberal, society matrons. I was happy to learn about union leader Clara Lemlich and learn more about Al Smith, Robert Wagner, and Frances Perkins.
This is an important book.
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