By Adriana Cargill
President Obama will arrive this Thursday in the Pullman Historic District to officially designate the neighborhood as the first national monument in Chicago. Pullman will join the ranks of the Statue of Liberty in telling the nation’s story.
George Pullman is a controversial 19th century railroad industrialist who created an experimental town to house his workforce. Most of the original buildings are still standing today. Pullman’s company town played an important role in labor history and early African American civil rights history.
Many neighborhood residents are elated about the designation but others remain skeptical.
Photo at top: The Hotel Florence was built by George Pullman and opened in 1881. (Adriana Cargill/Medill)
