History Hour: Pullman – The Man, The Company & The Community

About this Event
Join us for History Hour, a captivating series at The Barker Mansion that explores unique moments in local and national history. Each session offers a fresh perspective, blending stories from our region with the broader threads that shaped America.
This month’s feature highlights the legacy of George Pullman—innovator, industrialist, and founder of the Pullman Palace Car Company. Discover how Pullman revolutionized rail travel and built a model industrial town that still exists today as a Chicago neighborhood.

Learn about the Pullman family, the company’s luxurious railcars, and the unique design of the town of Pullman, where workers lived and worked in a carefully crafted community. Explore how this ambitious vision left a lasting impact on industry, urban planning, and American society.

ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Doug Davidson was the Director of Arbitration for the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers & Trainmen, the nation’s senior labor union, founded in 1863, and was the chairman of the National Railroad Adjustment Board (NRAB). He has enjoyed a 50-year career in the railroad industry with the Chicago & North Western and Union Pacific, working in train and engine service. Since 1978, he worked as a locomotive engineer and served 22 years as the local chairman of BLE-T Division 96 at Chicago, before taking a national role and being appointed to the NRAB in 2006.