Pullman Becomes a National Monument

On Thursday, February 19, President Obama will be in Chicago to declare the Pullman neighborhood a national monument. Pullman is one of the most famous and unusual neighborhoods in Chicago. In the 1880s George Pullman developed the area as an idyllic planned community with company-owned houses, schools, a park and a library, among other features, for the workers in his railroad car factory, also located in the neighborhood.

The “idyllic” community met turbulence in 1894 when workers went on strike because Pullman cut wages but not the rents he charged to live in his houses nor the company dividends he issued. The strike was broken when President Cleveland stepped in with federal troops, but it marked the transition of the area from company town to neighborhood. In 1898 the Illinois Supreme Court ordered the company to divest itself of the housing.

Today the neighborhood is known for its historic houses, townhomes and remaining factory buildings, as well as its role in the history of urban planning, transportation and the labor movement. There’s a website about the town and the Pullman Porter Museum dedicated to Pullman Porters and the impact of African Americans in the labor movement.

Special Collections has a collection of original photographs, documents and magazines about the neighborhood. For details, take a look at the Historic Pullman Collection finding guide, a detailed description of the collection. To learn more about the town of Pullman, check out our Town of Pullman booklist.