Wartime is not just troops in battle—it’s also a determined home front effort. During 1942-43, the Office of War Information sent famed photographer Jack Delano to highlight railroad workers’ contributions. With rubber and gas rationing, war materiel, troop movements and industrial output all depended on the steel rails.
Those photos are the centerpiece for a new Historic Pullman Foundation (HPF) Exhibit Hall display, opening May 14-15 during Pullman Railroad Days: People, Progress & Innovation. The exhibit continues through October 9. The hall is at 11141 South Cottage Grove in Chicago.
This exhibit was originally designed by the Center for Railroad Photography and Art and the Chicago History Museum in 2014.
Assigned to the Office of War Information, Delano photographed in Chicago during winter1942-43 to capture railroad workers, a vital link in the nation’s defenses. Delano roamed Chicago roundhouses, terminals, repair shops, steam locomotive cabs and cabooses to capture diverse workers in their daily labor.
Delano’s intimate portraits reveal begrimed yet dignified faces, transmitting the hard labor and pride this workforce represented.
These stunning 1940s photographs remind viewers that railroad work is critical and a career with deep pride.
The Illinois Labor History Society will offer tours during Railroad Days, along with other events.
Four railcars will open for display at the 111th Street Metra Electric station, reflecting Pullman craft workers’ quality work.
They include the “last Pullman Car,” Amtrak Superliner the George M. Pullman (1981), 1914’s Pennsylvania Railroad Francis L. Suter, 1928’s New York Central #3 and 1950’s Louisville & Nashville Royal Street. These cars are testament to Pullman’s designs and its workers’ high-craft standards.
The Suter was built in 1914 for the Pennsylvania Railroad as business car 7503, complete with a brass-railed observation platform. Business cars were used by company executives to inspect the lines and to entertain important customers and politicians. The car was retired in 1971 and passed onto private ownership, where it was refurbished to its period appearance. The car includes a wood-burning fireplace.
The Pennsylvania’s main competitor was the New York Central, and NYC #3 is also a classic brass-railed observation car. Its original owner was Commodore Cornelius Vanderbilt’s third-generation descendant Harold Sterling Vanderbilt. The car’s solid, heavyweight construction echoes the inter-war Pullman era, when thousands of Pullman sleepers, diners and parlor cars roamed the nation’s rails.
Royal Street is a 1950 Louisville & Nashville Railroad streamlined observation car. Royal Street exemplifies the nation’s railroads post-World War II commitment to updated, streamlined trains and Pullman’s continued contributions to elegant travel.
Visit HPF’s website, https:// www.pullmanil.org, for updates. The Pullman Exhibit Hall will be open after May 14 on Tuesday-Saturday, 11 a.m. – 3 p.m., at 11141 S Cottage Grove Ave, Chicago, IL 60628, 312-785-8901.
The Pullman National Monument and HPF are accessible via the Metra Electric line at the 111th Street station, or via the