Anna connelly fire escape biography

One hundred forty-six people perished in a matter of minutes in one of New York City’s most horrific fires—The Triangle Waist Company Fire in March of 1911. Most of the victims were young immigrant girls, all of them perished needlessly.

A significant number of lives might have been saved if the owners of the garment factory, located in the Asch Building in lower Manhattan, had installed Anna Connelly’s invention.

Fires in New York City were nothing new, but by 1900 what had changed was the height of the buildings. As the city grew, the buildings grew upward into the age of the skyscraper.

Unfortunately, many, if not most of the fire wagons had ladders and hoses that were only capable of reaching the fourth floor. When fires broke out on the upper floors of a building, the conflagrations quickly spread and anyone trapped above the fourth floor had a dismal chance of survival.

The Triangle Fire broke out on the upper three floors of the ten-story building.

Safety codes were extremely limited and lenient at the turn of the twentieth century in cities across America. Like many other entrepreneurs, the owners of the Triangle Waist Company paid more attention to increasing their profits than they did to ensure the safety of their workers.

Located on the corner of Washington Place and Greene Street, the Asch Building had been designed with wide open upper floor patterns, making  the space ideal for garment work. The rooms were gigantic with numerous long tables for cutters of the cotton fabric. The building had two small elevators and each floor had an exit door that was shielded by a partition. This purposeful design guaranteed that only one worker at a time could exit. The night watchman could then inspect each girl’s handbag, in the event she was trying to smuggle extra scraps of cloth out of the factory.

If you take the high flammability of cotton, small elevators, a puny fire escape, wide open rooms, and an exit that would allow only one person at a t

In the annals of history, some inventors receive widespread recognition for their contributions, while others, like Anna Connelly, remain largely unsung despite their significant impact on society. Anna Connelly’s invention of the fire escape has saved countless lives and remains a critical safety feature in buildings worldwide. This blog post delves into the life of Anna Connelly, her groundbreaking invention, and the lasting legacy of her work in enhancing fire safety.

The Life of Anna Connelly

Early Life and Background

Little is known about Anna Connelly’s early life, including her exact birthdate and background. What we do know is that she lived during a time when urbanization was rapidly increasing, and with it, the frequency of devastating building fires. The need for effective fire safety measures became increasingly apparent, setting the stage for Connelly’s crucial innovation.

The Inspiration for the Fire Escape

As cities grew and buildings became taller, fire safety became a pressing concern. During the late 19th century, building fires were common, often resulting in significant loss of life due to the lack of adequate escape routes. Connelly recognized this critical safety gap and sought to address it by inventing a practical solution.

The Invention of the Fire Escape

The Patent

In 1887, Anna Connelly patented her design for an external metal staircase, which she called a “fire escape.” Her design featured an innovative approach to providing safe and efficient evacuation routes for building occupants during a fire. The external staircase could be attached to the outside of a building, allowing residents to descend to safety without re-entering the building itself.

Design Features

Connelly’s fire escape design was simple yet effective. It consisted of a metal staircase with platforms at each floor level, providing a stable and accessible route for occupants to exit the building. The design included railings

American inventor

Anna Connelly was an American woman who lived from the mid-19th century to the mid-20th century in Pennsylvania. She was the inventor of the predecessor of the modern outdoor fire escape; her invention saved lives, causing it to become a safety component in modern buildings. In addition, she was one of the first women in the US to submit a patent application without any assistance from a man. Connelly made contributions to fields such as science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM).

Personal life

Connelly grew up in a time where women had less freedom outside of their own households. She was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on September 23, 1868. There is no information regarding her childhood or family in her early years. It is assumed by historians that she stayed in Philadelphia for most of her life, until she died in 1969 at the age of 100, since she was also recorded living in Philadelphia when she was 51 in the 1920 census, which is the main source of information regarding Connelly's life. The census stated that she was living with the Miller family as a boarder, and that she was working in a cotton mill as a reeler. The census also noted that she was a widow at the age of 51, suggesting she was married earlier in her life. It said that her parents were born in England and that Connelly was of English descent.

Context

Between 1870 and 1920, approximately 11 million Americans migrated from rural to urban regions, and an additional 25 million immigrants, mostly from Europe, moved to the United States. This migration fueled the expansion of American cities such as New York and Philadelphia, resulting in the development of taller and more crowded buildings. This expansion was driven by industri

Did you know that modern fire escapes owe their existence to a woman? At a time before women were allowed to vote or even work outside the home, Anna Connelly was one of the first women to submit an idea to the patent office. he first steel exterior staircase, predecessor of the modern fire escape, was patented by an American inventor named Anna Connelly. She was one of the first women to register a patent for an invention after the Civil War, when women were finally allowed to file patents for themselves.
Connelly’s design was a revolutionary way to make buildings safer by adding an exterior staircase with platforms between levels that prevented people from falling several stories down a flight of stairs in the panic of an emergency. his design also enabled fire fighters to more effectively target
fires by allowing them to haul water to specific areas of the structure, which decreased the personal risk to the fire fighters and allowed then to battle the blaze more quickly. Connelly’s design was also a very cost effective strategy for improving public safety. Because the staircases were added to the exterior of the building, there was no need for costly building remodeling. Her invention led to the first building codes in New York City requiring a second means of egress for people to escape buildings in a an emergency. Anna Connelly, one of America’s first female inventors, is directly responsible for saving the lives of thousands of people for nearly 150 years. EAST Coast ire Escapes continues to preserve and protect these historic structures as well as protecting public safety. Having your fire escape inspected is the first step in safeguarding your building. East Coast Fire Escapes provides all services regarding fire escapes; inspections, repairs, load tests, and scrape and paint. Call them get an estima