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George Mortimer Pullman was born on March 3, 1831, in Brockton, New York in Chautauqua County. In 1848, George quit his job in Brockton to join his family to start a cabinetmaking business. In 1853, George took over his business at the age of 22. In 1854, George contracted with New York state to move about 20 buildings (mostly warehouses) away from the canal so it could be widened. George realized that sooner or later the contract with New York state would run out. In addition, the United States was in the middle of a recession with a corresponding slowdown in business, so, in 1857, he answered an advertisement to help raise Chicago buildings to help control flooding and to enable a modern sewer system to be installed. Pullman was always an inventive, innovative entrepreneur. Legendarily, an extremely uncomfortable overnight train ride from Buffalo to Westfield, New York, caused him to realize that there was a vast market potential for comfortable, clean, efficient passenger service. He had a great deal of experience with compact and efficient sleeping accommodations thanks to his experiences with canal boats on the Erie Canal. He formed a partnership with former New York state senator Benjamin C. Field in 1857, one of his close friends and neighbors from Albion, to build and operate several sleeping cars. Pullman and Field secured a contract from the Chicago, Alton and St. Louis Railroad to develop a more comfortable sleeping car. Pullman and Field converted two moderately successful cars. In 1869, Pullman bought the Detroit Car and Manufacturing Company to consolidate all of his manufacturing operations into one facility. He built 5 classes of cars: hotel cars, parlor cars, reclining room cars, sleepers, and diners. Pullman also aggressively pursued his competitors, buying out the Central Transportation Company, his main competitor, in 1870. By 1875, the company had built a successful business model, of leasing Pullman cars to railroads and providing complete service for the traveling public.
In 1880 Pullman bought 4,000 acres near Lake Calumet some 14 miles south of Chicago on the Illinois Central Railroad for $800,000. He hired Solon Spencer Beman to design his new plant there, and in an effort to solve the issue of labor unrest and poverty, he also built a town adjacent to his factory with its own housing, shopping areas, churches, theaters, parks, hotel and library for his employees. The 1300 original structures were entirely designed by Beman. The centerpiece of the complex was the Administration Building and its man-made lake. The Hotel Florence, named for Pullman’s favorite daughter, was built nearby. Pullman believed that the country air and fine facilities without agitators, saloons and city vice districts would result in a happy, loyal workforce. The model planned community became a leading attraction during the World’s Columbian Exposition of 1893 and caused a national sensation. Pullman was praised by the national press for his benevolence and vision. As pleasant as the community may have been, Pullman expected the town to make money. By 1892 the community, profitable in its own right, was valued at over $5 Million. Pullman ruled the town like a feudal baron. He prohibited independent newspapers, public speeches, town meetings or open discussion. His inspectors regularly entered homes to inspect for cleanliness and could terminate leases on ten days notice. The church stood empty since no approved denomination would pay rent and no other congregation was allowed. Private charitable organizations were prohibited. Pullman employees declared “We are born in a Pullman house, fed from the Pullman shops, taught in the Pullman school, catechized in the Pullman Church, and when we die we shall go to the Pullman Hell.”
When business fell off in 1894, Pullman cut jobs, wages and working hours, but not rents or prices in his town. His failure to lower rents, utility charges and products led his workers to launch the Pullman Strike, a violent upheaval which was eventually broken up by federal troops sent in over the objections of Illinois Governor John P. Altgeld, by President Grover Cleveland. A national commission formed to study causes of the 1894 strike found Pullman’s paternalism partly to blame and Pullman’s company town to be “un-American.” In 1898, Illinois Supreme Court forced the Pullman Company to divest ownership in the town, which was then annexed to Chicago.
Pullman died of a heart attack on October 19, 1897 at the age of 66. Funeral services were held privately at his mansion on Prairie Avenue in the afternoon. The funeral cortege arrived at Graceland Cemetery where elaborate preparations had made. A pit the size of an average room had been dug on the family plot, its base and walls of reinforced concrete 18 inches thick. Into this the lead-lined mahogany casket was lowered, and covered with tarpaper and asphalt. The pit was filled with concrete on top of which a series of steel rails were laid at right angles to each other and bolted together. These rails were embedded in another layer of concrete. It took two days to complete, then sod was put down. These precautions were taken to prevent any desecration of the body — an unfortunate price Pullman paid for his victory in the Pullman strike Ambrose Bierce said It is clear the family in their bereavement was making sure the sonofabitch wasn’t going to get up and come back.
The Original Town of Pullman was completed in 1884. The average rent for three room apartments was $8.00 to $8.50. The rent for a five-room row house (with basement, bathroom, and water faucet on each of two floors) was $18.00 per month. Larger homes for professionals and company officers began at $25.00. Rents were calculated to achieve a 6% return on the cost of the housing; however, the investment never achieved more than 4 1/2%. Housing in Pullman was somewhat more expensive than in other parts of the city, but the quality of the housing was far superior to that available to workers elsewhere. All Pullman homes had indoor toilet facilities and running water -- advantages unheard of in other working class areas of the city.
The quality of company owned and maintained housing was uncommonly good for worker housing. It was Pullman's philosophy that happy workers would make more productive workers. A majority of the Pullman employees lived in the houses containing two to seven rooms. Foundations and some ornamentation was made of stone and the pitched roofs were slate. The homes, produced in blocks of two or more, provided economy of construction and maintenance. Every home had direct access to a private yard, woodshed and a paved alley. The alley served as access for vendors and trash collection, a company service included in the rent.
A variety of housing types can be found within each block and from block to block. The architectural differences were designed to meet varying income, status, and family makeup as well as for variation of the streetscape. Such variations are evident in the level of ornamentation in the rooflines, chimneys, and finish materials. Continuity was maintained by similarity of proportions, repetition of key details, and setbacks from the street.
Originally, no dwelling was more that two rooms deep in order to secure cross ventilation and sunlight. The use of skylights provided additional light on the top floors and basement windows increased the usefulness of that space.
After 1894 (the year of the nation-wide strike that began in Pullman) and certainly after 1897 (the year of George Pullman's death) the original landscape began to be dismantled -- Lake Vista was filled in; Arcade Park was razed; winding carriage paths were abolished in favor of what today is known as Cottage Grove Avenue; and company landscape maintenance waned, then ceased altogether. Although it is not unusual for the majority of time and attention to focus on historic buildings, the Pullman layout and landscape was as vital to the overall appearance of the nation's first planned industrial town as were its storied buildings.
In 1907, all Pullman residential properties were sold and have been privately owned ever since. In 1969, South Pullman receives State of Illinois landmark status. District includes all original housing from 111th to 115th Street, including factory buildings north of 111th Street to 109th Place along Cottage Grove Avenue. In 1971, the entire Pullman district, from 103rd to 115th Streets, received National Historic Landmark District designation. In 1972, South Pullman is designated as one of the first City of Chicago landmark districts. In 1973, the Historic Pullman Foundation is formed to further the preservation efforts of the District, which continues to this day.
The Historic Pullman Visitor Center is a starting point for your visit to the district. The center houses:
>a fifteen-minute introductory video on the town's history through today's preservation efforts
>exhibits, featuring numerous historic photos and Pullman related items including:
>furniture and artifacts from the Pullman Mansion on Prairie Avenue and exhibit on the Pullman family
>1896 award that named Pullman "the world's most perfect town"
>furniture and artifacts from the Hotel Florence
>original decorative wood berth door from train car
>rail travel service items, India Tree china, and others
>a sales desk for books and select gifts about the district and it’s history
You can also start your own self-guided walking tour of the district here by picking up a copy of our walking tour brochure. This is also the starting point for our guided tours, group tours and events."
Pullman Factory Tours are conducted 1st and 3rd Sundays, starting in May, at 11:30 a.m. These are well worth attending to get the best overview of the site.
Pullman is also the location of a number of movie locations, including the Berlin scenes from The Package.