Page 20 - JOA8-21
P. 20
PULLMAN AT YOUR SERVICE undeniable racism behind Pullman’s employment
practices, he ended up giving opportunities to
After President Lincoln was assassinated people who desperately needed them. In the
on April 15, 1865, Pullman made his new early 1900s—a time when many other busi-
luxury sleeper, the Pioneer, available to the nesses would not hire African Americans—
Lincoln family for the funeral cortège that the Pullman Company became the largest single
took Lincoln’s body from Washington D.C. employer of black men in the country.
to Springfield, Illinois for burial. A genius for These more comfortable, luxurious sleeper cars
public relations and a shrewd businessman, and the experience of riding the rails on a Pullman
Pullman knew the gesture would catch were an instant hit, affording wealthier passengers the
America’s attention as hundreds of thousands amenities they were accustomed to at home and allowing
turned out along the route to see the Lonesome Train middle-class travelers to enjoy a taste of the good life.
and pay their respects. Bruce White, Pullman and transportation lead at
Orders for his new cars soon began to pour in and Hildene, the Lincoln Family Home, notes that “Over
Pullman saw his opportunity: railway sleeper cars that time, the company was shipping cars all over the
provided “luxury for the middle class” and the “height of country—and internationally. At the turn of the 20th
luxury” for the wealthy. The business was booming in century, Pullman was the largest manufacturing
the post-Civil War economy, and it was time to company, of any kind, in the world.” At its peak,
expand, not only his company but his vision for what Vintage circa 1929 heavy silver plated Pullman sleeper cars accommodated 26 million
rail travel could be and offer the discerning traveler. 4oz. lidded creamer from a pullman people riding the rails each year. In effect, Pullman
In 1867, Pullman organized the original Pullman company train car. Marked on the operated “the largest hotel in the world,” his name
Palace Car Co. in Chicago, which introduced his first base as made for the pullman company synonymous with the height of luxury rail travel.
in 1929. Selling for $78 at
“hotel on wheels,” the President – a sleeper car with an Rubylane.com
attached kitchen and dining car. Pullman’s new luxury
sleeper cars were decorated with carpeting, draperies, upholstered PULLMAN MEETS HIS MATCH
chairs, libraries, and card tables, and offered food that rivaled the best In 1880, in a move to expand his production facilities to
restaurants of the day. accommodate demand, Pullman purchased 4,000 acres of land near
Another feature of traveling on this new Pullman was its impeccable Lake Calumet, 14 miles south of Chicago on the Illinois Central
customer service provided by an all-African American staff of “Pullman Railroad, for $800,000. Trying to solve the issue of labor unrest and
Porters” whose job it was to lug baggage, shine shoes, set up, and clean
the sleeping berths and serve the needs of its white passengers. Many of
these Pullman porters were former slaves. Pullman reasoned that former
slaves would know best how to cater to his customers’ every whim, and
they would work long hours for cheap wages. He also thought that
black porters (especially those with darker skin) would be more
invisible to his white upper- and middle-class passengers, making it
easier for them to feel comfortable during their journey. Despite the
Rare vintage Ives Railway Lines # 72 Washington Pullman 1 gauge B21 Lionel Pre-war O gauge #2642 and #2643 Pullman and observation passenger cars
selling for $495 on eBay are currently selling on eBay for $99.95.
In 2018, Pook & Pook sold a model of the Flying Dutchman parlor rail car for $5,600.
Exceptional handmade wooden model of the Flying Dutchman Pullman Parlor Car, exhibiting an amazing level of detail from the intricately painted exterior
to the finely carpeted and wallpapered interior, furnished with velvet upholstered swivel seats, spittoons, and a convenient lavatory visible through glazed windows
and removable roof, 30 1/2” l. Pullman, who was more famous for sleeping cars, produced parlor cars from the 1880’s through the 1960’s.
This model exemplifies their production from the Gilded Age.
18 Journal of Antiques and Collectibles