George Mortimer Pullman
by Michael Shannon


 

     "Just as Lear had expected his daughters to accept his decision gratefully and on his terms, Pullman could not acknowledge that his workers were adults, capable of addressing their needs and their rights" (Reiff, 1997). There are two very contrasting views on George Mortimer Pullman. The first is that he was a total tyrant, seeking control of every aspect of his company right down to their homes and personal lives. And the second is that he was a man being sensitive to the needs of his workers and being more of a father figure to his employees.
     In order to understand Pullman better, you must know a little about his background. He was born on March 3, 1831 in Brocton, New York (U*X*L, 2001).   His father was a carpenter and he was the third born of five children (U*X*L, 2001).  He left school at fourteen and took a job at his uncle's store as a clerk making $40 per year (U*X*L, 2001). Three years later he moved to Albion, New York. There he became a cabinetmaker while his father was working on moving houses, this was during the time when the Erie Canal was being widened (U*X*L, 2001).
    While still under contract, his father died in 1853 and George decided to leave the cabinetmaking trade, and fulfill his father's house moving contracts (U*X*L, 2001).  He did this very well and began to make a good reputation for himself (U*X*L, 2001).  After the canal was finished, work started to become scarce, so George picked up and went to Chicago to do similar work (U*X*L, 2001). In Chicago, buildings and streets needed to be raised in order to avoid the water. George Pullman saw an opportunity and began to raise buildings and eventually blocks at a time (U*X*L, 2001).
     This is about time where Pullman's visionary skills can start to be noticed. Pullman used to go back and forth from Chicago to Albion to visit family. The idea of the Pullman car is said to be from these frequent and long train rides (U*X*L, 2001).  George had always kept in contact with a friend in Albion named Ben Field. The two of them perfected the plans, had them patented, and started construction on the first Pullman car named, the Pioneer (Discovering, 1997).
     The Pioneer took one year to complete and cost $20,174 (Discovering, 1997). Railroads were the way to travel at this time in America and Pullman was the most luxurious carrier of the time. His cars were referred to as "rolling hotels" (Dubin, 2000). The typical Pullman car would offer "fine dining, barbers, baths, maids, and even libraries with the latest books and periodicals" (Dubin, 2000). Pullman had positioned himself at the top of the market for travel and luxury was the Pullman advantage.
    Then there were more problems; the car was higher, wider, and longer than anything else on the railroads (Discovering, 1997). Changes were being made to most railroads but when Abraham Lincoln's funeral procession had the Pioneer in it, those changes were hurried (Discovering, 1997). After this the Pullman car was in full force and plants started to open up all across the country. Plants had opened in Michigan, Delaware, St. Louis, California, and finally in Pullman, Illinois (Discovering, 1997). Finally by 1880, the Pullman Company had consolidated all their production to a few plants, the main of which was in Pullman, Illinois (Carwardine, 1997).
    

                                                                                                                     
    Pullman the city was where you first start to see the tyrannical side of George Pullman the man. The city was built much like a mining camp, only a lot bigger and a lot nicer. The "company town," as Carwardine calls it, was built with rental houses, stores, banks, churches, a public library and parks (Carwardine, 1997). In this respect, Pullman was viewed as a visionary and a good man, trying to provide his workers with great opportunities for land, education, and a better life. The "company town" was praised for "its cleanliness, its housing, and its educational opportunities" (Reiff, 1997).  The town was everything his employees needed and George provided that.
     To accommodate for the World's Fair of 1893 in Chicago, the Pullman Company was expanding its business and increasing production to meet demands. Not realizing that after the World's Fair, demand might fall (U*X*L, 2001). When the company started failing and people were canceling orders, Pullman did something most entrepreneurs would never even think of doing. He started taking orders and producing cars at a loss to the company in order to keep the plant open (U*X*L, 2001). This was the fatherly Pullman wanting the best for his employees and trying anything to keep his and their dreams alive.
     But some people didn't see the town of Pullman as such a great idea. People thought it was "un-American" (Reiff, 1997). There is a good argument that town takes away from the whole idea of the "American dream."  Men did not have to work for or worry about having a house because one would be supplied. There were also very strict rules. Reiff's critique cites examples such as no taverns in the town because men were supposed to spend their nights at home with their families. Women were supposed to stay at home and build a moral environment in the home (Reiff, 1997). Another example is the right to vote was reserved for men and even they were influenced as to how they were supposed to vote (Reiff, 1997). But Pullman saw most of these things as good and helping the employees have better and moral lives.
 

    The town was notorious for horror stories as well. To most people in the surrounding areas, Pullman workers were referred to as "slaves" (Reiff, 1997). Not to mention that all of the porters employed by the Pullman Company, were referred to as "George." This was in honor of their owner, George Pullman (Reiff, 1997). This practice inspired the first black union, the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters (Davis, 1994).  It also was the basis for the movie "10,000 Men Named George."
 Eventually, Pullman began to lose touch with the employees and most of the power was shifted to the foremen in the company (U*X*L, 2001). The company had expanded too much for him alone to oversee everything. This could be conceived as the beginning of the end for Pullman, the town and the man.
     With the Depression of 1893, there were lowering numbers of people traveling in the Pullman cars (U*X*L, 2001). News came shortly after that there was no need for any Pullman cars for the next three years (U*X*L, 2001). This brought upon a huge number of layoffs at Pullman in order to cut costs. The workers that remained were expected to pay all of the same rents and fees to Pullman while taking a pay cut (U*X*L, 2001). This is what had eventually brought upon the famous Pullman Strike of 1894.
     The strike is very important to the Labor movement in America. This was one of the first strikes to have national repercussions. The Pullman Strike started in 1894 on the tail end of a depression. The workers had become outraged because the depression caused wages to decrease but Pullman would not lower the costs of things in the town of Pullman (Discovering, 1997). The strike started with the town and spread eventually to every one working on or with the Pullman cars. (Discovering, 1997) It got to the point that people would not touch them and this had negative effects across the country. The Pullman strike is historically documented very well and was one of the main factors in the downfall of the company.
    Pullman was often away from his wife and his family and would definitely be considered a modern day workaholic. He used to write his wife often, but lost touch with his two sons and eventually cut them out of his will (U*X*L, 2001). Pullman went into work on October 18, 1897 and later that night called a doctor shortly before dying of a heart attack (U*X*L, 2001).  He never liked the Chicago humidity and that could have been a reason for his death. Even after the company had failed, Pullman still hosted parties for the rich and famous of Chicago (U*X*L, 2001).
    In a critique written by Janice L. Reiff, for the Journal of Urban History, she examined an article written by Jane Addams titled, "A modern Lear and his daughters: gender in the model town of Pullman." The article obviously compares George Pullman to Shakespeare's King Lear. She talks mostly about how Pullman and his workers lost sight of the common goal. Reiff's critique gives a very pessimistic view of George Pullman and really tries to shed a dark light on his accomplishments and there is a lot of evidence to support her theory. Reiff does however admit that even though Pullman's tyrannical ways led to the Strike and downfall of his company, they also were one of the main components for his success.
     I really don't feel that George Pullman was a terrible tyrant. The man can be viewed as having a good heart and as somebody who tried to give his employees the best opportunities to live better lives than most people in that day. And there are those that would argue that he was an egotistical tyrant that was trying to control every little aspect of his employee's lives. Some of the practices inside the town of Pullman were as close to communism as this country might ever see. I think that Pullman had the best at heart. He wanted to create sort of a utopian society, but that goes against most of American ideology. Whether or not you view George Mortimer Pullman as a tyrant or a good person, no one can argue that he was one of "most significant industrialists this country has ever produced" (Carwardine, 1997).
 
 

Works Cited

 Carwardine, William H., The Pullman Strike, 1973; Leyendecker, Liston E., Palace Car Prince, 1992.

Davis, Lawrence, Radio Interview, All Things Considered (NPR) 03-05-94

Discovering Biography. Gale Research 1997. Reproduced in Student Resource Center. Http://galnet.galegroup.com/servlet.SRC/   Retrieved 10-28-02

Dubin, Arthur D., When Pullman went to the Fair. Trains Magazine, Oct 2000 v60 i10 p 44

 "Pullman, George M" Encyclopedia Britannica <http;//www.search.eb.com/eb/article?eu=63449>   Accessed 10-28-02

 Reiff, Janice L., A modern Lear and his daughters: gender in the model town of Pullman. Journal of Urban History, March 1997 v23 n3 p316

U*X*L Biographies. U*X*L, 2001. Reproduced in Student Resource Center. Http://galnet.galegroup.com/servlet.SRC/   Retrieved 10-28-02
 

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