History | Timeline 1879

George M. Pullman purchases 4,000 acres of land south of Chicago - only 600 acres were used for building the factories and the first American model industrial town of Pullman, Illinois.

Solon Spencer Beman, only 27 years old at the time, was hired as the architect for the town and Nathan F. Barrett, the landscape architect. 1880

Construction of the factory shops and the town of Pullman begins. 1881

First resident moves into the town on January 1, 1881.

The Hotel Florence is completed.

Hundreds of visitors, from as far away as Europe, tour the model industrial town. 1882

Population of Pullman is at 3,500. 1885

The population of the town swells to almost 9,000. 1889

Hyde Park Township (which includes Pullman) is annexed into the City of Chicago through popular election. Themajority of Pullman residents voted against annexation. The Pullman Land Association continues management and maintenance of town properties. 1892

Original Market Hall building is destroyed by fire. New Market Hall building and surrounding Market Square residential buildings are designed by Solon Beman and erected the same year. 1893

World's Fair Columbian Exposition takes place in Chicago, Pullman is a major tourist attraction.

Nationwide economic depression affects Pullman, resulting in wages being reduced.

Pullman Land Association manages over 1,740 units in Pullman. 1894

Pullman Strike occurs after Pullman refuses to meet with committee of workers to discuss grievances. Eugene Debs's American Railway Union becomes involved by boycotting Pullman cars, refusing to move them on the rails. With rail service interrupted and the U.S.mail disrupted, the situation escalated to a national level as Federal troops