Pullman, Chicago

Pullman
—  Community area  —
Community Area 50 - Pullman
Location within the city of Chicago
Coordinates: 41°42.6′N 87°37.2′W
Country	United States
State	Illinois
County	Cook
City	Chicago
Neighborhoods	list Cottage Grove Heights Pullman
Area
• Total	4.86 sq mi (12.58 km2)
Population (2010)
• Total	7,325
• Density	1,508.1/sq mi (582.27/km2)
Demographics2000
• White	8.49%
• Black	81.4%
• Hispanic	8.91%
• Asian	0.17%
• Other	1.03%
Time zone	CST (UTC-6)
• Summer (DST)	CDT (UTC-5)
ZIP Codes	parts of 60628
Median income	$30,966
Source: U.S. Census, Record Information Services

Pullman, one of Chicago's 77 community areas, is a neighborhood located on the city's South Side. Twelve miles from the Chicago Loop, Pullman is situated adjacent Lake Calumet.

The area known as Pullman encompasses a much wider area than the two historic areas (the older historic area is often referred to as just "Pullman", a Chicago Landmark district and the northern annex historic area is usually referred to as "North Pullman"). This article deals with all areas, although the area built by the Pullman company is bounded by 106th Street on the North, 115th Street on the South, Cottage Grove on the west, and the railroad tracks on the east.

Today the neighborhood of Pullman is quickly gentrifying with many residents involved in the restoration of the district through their own homes and throughout the district as a whole. Walking tours of Pullman are available.

Pullman is home to many historic and architecturally significant buildings, among these are the Hotel Florence, the Arcade Building which was destroyed in the 1920s, the Clock Tower and Factory, the complex surrounding Market Square and Greenstone Church. Pullman is also home to one of Chicago's many beautiful 'Polish Cathedrals', the former church of St. Salomea, which is now used by Salem Baptist Church of Chicago. Pullman was one of seven sites that were nominated for the Illinois Seven Wonders sites in a contest sponsored by the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity. Pullman is served by two Metra Electric Line stations: Kensington (115th Street) and Pullman (111th Street). Most Metra suburban express trains passing through the area stop at the 115th Street station, and only local trains stop at the 111th Street station.

History

Historic Pullman was built in from the 1880 by George Pullman for his eponymous railroad car company, the Pullman Palace Car Company. Pullman's architect Solon Spencer Beman was said to be so proud of his creation that he asked George Pullman if the neighborhood could be named for himself. Pullman responded to the effect, "Sure, we'll take the first half of my name, and the second half of yours."

In a day when most workers lived in shabby tenements near their factories, Pullman seemed a dream, being voted as "the world's most perfect town" by the jury of the second International Hygienic and Pharmaceutical Exposition in 1896. Everything, from stores to townhouses, were owned by the Company. The design was pleasing, and all of the workers' needs were met within the neighborhood. The houses were comfortable by standards of the day, and contained such amenities as indoor plumbing, gas, and sewers.

Pullman in the late 19th century

Pullman's misfortune came during the depression which followed the Panic of 1893. When demand for Pullman cars slackened, the Pullman company laid off hundreds of workers, and switched many more to pay-per-piece work. This work, while paying more per hour, reduced total worker income. Despite these cutbacks, the Company did not reduce rents for those that lived in the town of Pullman. The Pullman Strike began in 1894, and lasted for 2 months, eventually leading to intervention by the US government. The Strike Commission set up in 1894 thought that the aesthetic features admired by visitors had little monetary value for employees.

George Pullman himself died in 1897. The Illinois Supreme Court required the company to sell off the town because the running of the town was outside the company's charter. It was then was annexed into the city of Chicago. Within ten years, all non-manufacturing property - the houses, the public buildings - was sold off to the individual occupants.

Along with the whole South Side, the town of Pullman had been annexed to the City of Chicago in 1889. After the strike Pullman gradually became a regular Chicago neighborhood, only with distinguishing Victorian architecture. The fortunes of the neighborhood rose and fell with the Pullman Company.

Pullman Car Works manufactured its last car in early 1981. In 1991 the state of Illinois purchased a section of the plant intending to create a museum of the history of the company and the Pullman community. This plan was called into question as the result of a fire in December 1998.

The neighborhood's decline that began in the 1950s continued, but that economic decline at least spared the district's architecture. In 1960 the original Town of Pullman, approximately between 111th and 115th Streets, was threatened with total demolition for an industrial park. The residents there formed the Pullman Civic Organization and saved their community. By 1972 the Pullman Historic District had obtained National, State, and City landmark status to protect the original 900 rowhouses and public buildings built by George Pullman (it gained National Landmark Historic District status in 1969 and was listed on on the National Register of Historic Places; then in 1970 is was made a State landmark by the Illinois Historic Preservation Agency; and finally South Pullman was declared as a City of Chicago Landmark in 1972). The controls over new building and renovation, administered by the City of Chicago, are explained in the Beman Committe's Homeowner's Guide (the Committee is named after Pullman's original architect, Solon Spencer Beman )

Census data

Administration building in Pullman

1995 Census date of homebuyers: 61% Caucasian, 27% African-American, 12% Other (Hispanic, Asian, etc.)

1999 Census date of homebuyers: 65% Caucasian, 29% African-American, 6% Other (Hispanic, Asian, etc.)

2001 Census date of homebuyers: 75% Caucasian, 19% African-American, 6% Other (Hispanic, Asian, etc.)

The demographic data in the table to the upper right reflect the entire "community area" that is now known as Pullman, not just the historic areas, which are generally more diverse. For example in 2000 Census Tract 5003.00 was 53.5% White and 26.7% African-American, and 36.1% of Hispanic Origin of any race.

References in media

Pullman has been featured in several major motion pictures. Road to Perdition (Tom Hanks, Paul Newman) was filmed in historic Pullman, showing the factory and how it "once was" with workers, as well as many other scenes of the neighborhood itself. The 1993 film The Fugitive had several key scenes in Pullman, as this was where the one armed man lived in the movie. You can see Harrison Ford in a local bar using the pay phone, then he runs down the alley, then atop many of the Pullman rowhouses. In April 2007, Universal Studios began filming of "The Express" which also features several scenes in Pullman, one which includes the cast leaving the Greenstone Church (see Ernie Davis).

On November 12, 2006, Historic Pullman was the topic of the HGTV television show "National Open House", featuring a Pullman house on 112th and Langley.

Education

Chicago Public Schools operates public schools.

See also

• Granite City, Illinois (another company town)

External links

• Official City of Chicago Pullman Community Map
• Pullman State Historic Site (contains lots of historic photographs)
• Pullman Neighborhood Website
• Pullman community events
• Image of museum
• DigIt Pullman
• Sun-Times Article on "DigIt" and Pullman
• Encyclopaedia Chicago: Pullman
• Sun-Times.com Blog Article about Pullman
• Illinois Seven Wonders - Voting has ended
• Report Non-Emergency Issues in Pullman