Seven residences built in the 1880s were showcased this past weekend during the annual Pullman housewalk on Chicago's Far South Side. The homes were built for the various types of employees of the Pullman Palace Car Co., a maker of sleeper railroad cars. It's the 36th annual event.

"We have waited years for one particular homeowner to agree to be on tour," said Cynthia Martin-McMahon, co-chair for the event sponsored by the Historic Pullman Foundation. "He would continually say 'maybe next year,' but this year he has graciously agreed." Mario Delano and his family reside in a home built for a skilled craftsman at the Pullman factory.

"These skilled craftsmen were woodworkers, carpenters and upholsterers," she said. "The current owner has made a few necessary updates, but essentially the home has remained the same as it was when built in 1882. It would have rented for about $18 a month in the Pullman era."

Joe Daniels will present his worker cottage -- just 14 feet wide -- originally built for an unskilled laborer at the Pullman factory. This home would have rented for about $14 a month in those days.

"We are proud to feature 'the working man' on this year's tour with a nice blend of worker cottages and skilled craftsmen's homes," said Martin-McMahon. "Labor was never more important."

Ralph Larson has been a Pullman resident nearly all his life, and his home on the tour is near Market Circle, once the shopping mecca for Pullman residents. The kitchen of the home, built in 1885, has been completely overhauled. "Ralph's grandfather and great-grandfather both worked for the Pullman Co., so his roots here are very strong indeed," said Martin-McMahon.

The owners of a 3-story residence on the tour previously had resided in the Lincoln Square area. The bathrooms have been remodeled, and the kitchen has been updated.

Second generation Pullman resident Al Quiroz will display his collection of Pullman memorabilia -- worker artifacts, blueprints of rail cars and original photographs from 1890 to 1980 -- at the Center, 614 E. 113th Street. Quiroz, who once worked at the Pullman Co., will be on hand to answer questions.

Event co-chair Georgia Vroman said Pullman visitors can "experience a living museum in the city." The homes, despite their modest sizes, were built with modern amenities for the day, such as indoor plumbing.

At the Arcade Park Bandstand, Harmonica Jimmy and the Roseland Blues Band will perform on Saturday, and the Mudcats Dixieland Band will play on Sunday. Classic cars will be displayed Sunday.

George Mortimer Pullman moved to Chicago in 1859, coordinating laborers who raised and moved entire buildings -- a service desperately needed by a city built on a swamp. In addition to this successful career, Pullman had a strong interest in revolutionizing the railway sleeping car, notes the Chicago History Museum, prompted after an arduous overnight train trip in the state of New York.

A Pullman car was included on President Abraham Lincoln's funeral train in 1865, and with the national publicity, business for Pullman boomed -- even though a Pullman car cost five times more than the competition. The cars featured plush upholstery, ample lighting and ornately decorated interiors.

The town of Pullman included 1,300 structures -- housing, shopping, churches, theaters, parks, hotel and library -- all designed by one architect, Solon Spencer Beman. George Pullman believed that a town without saloons would encourage productive employees. The town did prosper for a while.

But George Pullman ruled the town like a tyrant -- forbidding newspapers, public speeches and town meetings. His inspectors regularly entered homes to inspect for cleanliness and could terminate leases on 10- days notice, according to Web site reports.

Weary Pullman employees lamented: "We are born in a Pullman house, fed from the Pullman shops, taught in the Pullman school and when we die, we will go to the Pullman Hell."

During an economic depression in the mid-1890s, George Pullman slashed wages -- but prices for rent and food remained the same. Furious workers went on strike, which became violent, and the glory days were over.

The workers' hatred for George Pullman never let up. When he died in 1897, his relatives feared his body would be stolen. So he was buried at Graceland Cemetery in a lead coffin in a vault reinforced with steel and concrete.

In 1930, the Pullman Co. merged with Standard Steel Car Co. to become Pullman-Standard, which built its last car for Amtrak in 1982.

The City of Chicago annexed the town of Pullman in 1889. In the 1960s, developers wanted to demolish the whole Pullman neighborhood. With the support of the residents, the Pullman Civic Organization was formed to defeat such plans. Pullman became a National Landmark District in 1971.