Background
George Mortimer was born on March 3, 1831 in Brocton, Chautauqua County, New York, United States, where his father worked as a general mechanic. He was one of the ten children of James Lewis and Emily Caroline (Minton) Pullman.
George Mortimer was born on March 3, 1831 in Brocton, Chautauqua County, New York, United States, where his father worked as a general mechanic. He was one of the ten children of James Lewis and Emily Caroline (Minton) Pullman.
George Mortimer Pullman attended school until he was fourteen years old.
After school Pullman took a position in a small store in Westfield, New York. Three years later, 1848, he joined his brother, a cabinet-maker in Albion, New York, and remained there seven years, learning the trade and undertaking independently a number of contracting jobs. These he found profitable and much to his liking, so when work around Albion slackened he gave up cabinet-making.
In 1855 he removed to Chicago, he quickly found contracting work, which included the raising of the level of several streets and the buildings flanking them. His success in this and in similar jobs soon gained for him a substantial reputation. Meanwhile, he began giving serious attention to the development of his idea, formulated some years earlier, of providing better sleeping accommodations on railway trains. By 1858 his plans had materialized to such a point that he boldly contracted with the Chicago & Alton Railroad to remodel two day coaches into sleeping cars. In these he incorporated his basic idea of an upper berth hinged to the side of the car and supported by two jointed arms.
With the experience gained in this first venture, Pullman constructed a third car in 1859. Although the three cars were put into service on the Chicago & Alton Railroad and were extremely popular, the railroad companies generally were reluctant to adopt them. Pullman thereupon left Chicago for the Colorado mining fields, where from 1859 to 1863 he ran a general store and in his spare time worked out plans for his first real Pullman car.
Upon returning to Chicago, he and his intimate friend, Ben Field, of Albion, New York, together consummated these plans. They also applied for a patent on the folding upper berth, which was granted them jointly on April 5, 1864 (No. 42, 182). They then began the construction of their first car, Pioneer, which required a year to complete. A joint patent for this was granted Field and Pullman on September 19, 1865 (No. 49, 992).
In 1867 he organized the Pullman Palace Car Company. He established his first manufacturing plant at Palmyra, New York, but removed it in a short time to Detroit, Michigan. As the business developed, additional plants were established in St. Louis, Elmira, Wilmington, San Francisco and Pullman.
Outside of his own business he was financially interested in other car manufactories and was the owner of the Eagleton Wire Works, New York. He was, also, president of the Metropolitan Elevated Railroad in New York City.
In 1897, Pullman died of a heart attack at the age of 66.
On June 13, 1867, George Mortimer Pullman married Hattie Sanger of Chicago, and at the time of his death was survived by his widow and four children.