Fire in the Heart of the City: The Triangle Shirtwaist Tragedy and the Origins of Modern Charity
David Conrad-Pérez
(NYU Press, 2026) 

While the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire of 1911 is considered a turning point in the fight for labor rights, it also transformed how America envisioned social welfare. In the wake of the fire, Adolph Ochs, the ambitious new publisher of The New York Times, and Rose Schneiderman, a defiant young labor organizer, were thrown into a momentous struggle over who should organize the city’s response: a rising charity sector led by wealthy financiers and civic elites, or the reform-minded unions and activists of Lower Manhattan. This deeply researched story reverberates to this day.

Event funded in part by the generous support of the Delaware Community Foundation.

This event is presented in partnership with ACLU of Delaware.

About the Author
David Conrad-Pérez is a historian and former journalist who earned his PhD at UPenn’s Annenberg School. He is research director at the Center for Media & Social Impact at American University. Conrad- Pérez has worked in public media, and his writing has appeared in The New York Times and the LA Times, among others.

Purchase the book
Please help support local independent bookstores by purchasing this book at Browseabout Books, official bookseller of the History Book Festival. Online sources and digital versions are tempting; however, supporting local brick and mortar shops helps to preserve our vibrant main streets. Drop by Browseabout, order books online, or call the store at 302-226-2665. You also may purchase a copy at biblion in Lewes.

About the Festival
The History Book Festival is the first and only book festival in the United States devoted exclusively to history. With the help of our presenting funding partner —  The Lee Ann Wilkinson Group, Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices | PenFed Realty — as well as our program and community partners, volunteers, and donors, the 2026 History Book Festival will be full of great discussions with authors of newly published narrative nonfiction and historical fiction. 

Thanks to all our donors, especially our education and outreach funding partners: Carolyn & Aaron Nayer, Jen Mason & Clare Hancock, the Red Wagon Foundation, and Browseabout Books. HBF authors visit classrooms in Delaware, and HBF provides their books to schools, libraries, and community organizations.

Our Keynote event is presented by Griswold Home Care for Sussex & Kent Counties and Groome Church; our Closing event is presented by the Delaware Community Foundation. The Spirited Discussion, our gathering for attendees and presenters to celebrate and discuss their day, is presented by Dogfish Head Beer & Benevolence.

Special thanks to our Program Partners for their continuing support: the Lewes Public Library for event promotion and production; Browseabout Books in Rehoboth Beach, official bookseller of the History Book Festival; and Historic Lewes for event promotion and author hospitality. Thanks also to the Lewes Chamber of Commerce for event promotion, and the Cape Gazette and Delmarva Public Media, our media partners.