Submitted by CZ
Pullman-Standard was the largest builder of rail cars in the world. The company had a significant impact on the industrialization and culture of Butler. Footprints of Pullman-Standard still remain today.
The Pullman-Standard Historical Fund is a group of former employees dedicated to preserving the legacy of Pullman-Standard for future generations. Currently, they are selling commemorative license plates to help fund future projects. The license plates are $10, and are available at various locations throughout Butler. The image on the license plate is the image used for the in-house safety awards.
These future projects include a memorial flag, a plaque by the rail car located at the Butler Transit Authority, and banners placed along Hollywood Drive. These banners commemorate some of the key people in Pullman-Standard’s history, including John Hansen, “Diamond Jim” Brady, and George Pullman.
The rail car located at the Butler Transit Authority is an original Pullman-Standard car. It was built in 1974 for Milwaukee Railroad, and painted its original color. The car was found in Saskatchewan, Canada, and came by rail to New Castle, PA, where it was refurbished. Buffalo and Pittsburgh Railroad moved it from New Castle to the corner of Bessemer Avenue, by the former Bessemer Inn. A tractor trailer bed then moved it from Bessemer Avenue to its current location. It sits on original 1902 rails from the Standard Steel Car Company.
History
The Pullman-Standard Car Manufacturing Company incorporated in 1902 as the Standard Steel Car Company. It was co-founded by John Hansen, then only 29 years old, and James Buchanan Brady, also known as “Diamond Jim” Brady. Both men were former employees of the Pressed Steel Car Company in Pittsburgh, with Hansen as their chief engineer and Brady their star salesman.
Hansen believed the process Pressed Steel used to build rail cars was too expensive, and thought a better way to design the cars was to use the standard plates, angles, and channels from the steel rolls, along with the available products that came from the steel mills. That is where Standard comes from in the company name, by using the standard shapes and mill products. When Hansen put his operation together, he wanted to make everything for his own cars. A lot of other companies outsourced most of their materials. He wanted to produce everything in house and have control over the manufacturing process.
Hansen and Brady were able to obtain financing from Andrew Mellon to the sum of $3 million. The original site for this new venture was originally Beaver Falls, PA. Everything was prepared for site development in Beaver Falls, but an agreement with the city government could not be reached as to the placement of the rail line, so the company purchased 224 acres of land in what was then known as Butler Borough. This site once was home to the Butler Fair Grounds, the Pickle Factory, the George Stamm Brickyard, and various farms and land owners.
They broke ground in April 1902, and produced their first car on August 31,1902, which was a hopper for the Chesapeake and Ohio Railroad Company. Before the plant even opened, they had orders for 6,000 cars. Business boomed during this time. 1907 was their banner year. They made 31,574 cars, averaging 105 cars per day, and employed over 6,000 people, which was twice the employment population of the 1950’s through when the plant closed. One sale worthy of note is “Diamond Jim” Brady’s sale of 38,000 cars to the French government. This sale was worth over $100 million. In today’s dollars, the sale would have been worth over $2.6 billion. An assembly plant was then built in LaRochelle, France. Kits were made in Butler, then shipped to France where the cars were assembled.
Over the years, Hansen bought out other companies and built his empire. Along with the Butler plant, other locations included Baltimore, Maryland, Hammond, Indiana, Middletown, Pennsylvania, New Castle, Pennsylvania, Richmond, Virginia, Sagamore, Massachusetts, LaRochelle, France and Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
During WWI and WWII, the plant was used for making high explosive shells for the US government, along with shells for England. After WWI, The shell shop was turned into an automobile plant. The first automobile manufactured by Standard Auto was the Standard 8, labeled the Monarch of the Mountains. This came in four different models; Coupe, Roadster, Sedan, and Touring Car, which were priced from $2300 to $2600. Design began in 1913, with production starting in 1916. Competition in the car manufacturing business was strong, and in 1929 Standard Auto was sold to American Austin.
In 1929, The Great Depression rocked America. During this time, production stalled at Standard Steel Company, with the plant closing for two years. In 1929, George Pullman, of Pullman, Inc., a passenger car company out of Chicago, purchased controlling interest in Standard Steel Car Company, and helped to save the company. In 1934, Pullman Car and Manufacturing merged with Standard Steel Car Co. to form the Pullman-Standard Car Manufacturing Company.
During its 80 year history, Pullman-Standard had many accomplishments. It was a major factor in the industrialization of Butler, putting Butler on the industrial map. They averaged 2,000 to 3,000 employees at a time, and it was the largest manufacturer of rail cars in the world. In June, 1952, Pullman-Standard celebrated the 50th anniversary of the car works. During this celebration, the 350,000th car built in Butler rolled out of the plant. The scale of the plant was incredible. The property went from the Pickle Gate Bridge to Pillow Street, eventually encompassing 244 acres. The plant itself was 1//2 mile long, all under one roof, and had 15 miles of railroad track on the grounds.
At one time the company ranked in the top 500 on the NY Stock Exchange. In the late 1970’s, Pullman-Standard was honored by Wall Street because they had delivered a dividend every quarter for over 100 years. They had renamed Wall Street Pullman-Standard Street, which would have included time as Pullman-Standard and Pullman, Inc.
The Pullman-Standard plant in Butler closed February 4, 1982, with approximately 2,500 people still employed. In 2005, the plant was demolished, but a few out buildings still remain. One is the office building along Hansen Avenue. Another is the building where Wigton Eye Care is located, as well as a few other smaller buildings. There are still operational Pullman-Standard rail cars. The cars had a 40 to 50 year lifespan, so cars built in the 1980’s still have some time left on them.
Impact
Pullman-Standard had a lasting impact on the community as we know it today. Lyndora is named after John Hansen’s family, though there are differing versions as to the true origin of the name. His daughter was named Lynda, and his wife, Grace, was nicknamed Dora. Hansen Avenue, named after John Hansen, holds the city-township dividing line, which runs down the center of Hansen Avenue. The plant was in the city, and the community of Lyndora in the township.
When Hansen and Brady left Pressed Steel Car, they invited the executives and workers to join them in their new Butler plant, with some choosing to relocate. Also, in 1902, Butler had a population of about 10,000 people. More people were needed to run such a large plant. Thousands of European immigrants, especially Eastern European immigrants, came to America to work in the plant, helping to shape the culture of Lyndora. The churches in Lyndora are a testament to the different cultural backgrounds shaping our community. Houses were built and streets were forming. The Lyndora Hotel was built, new stores opened, as well as a bank. Bars and restaurants also started popping up.
Apartments were built in Butler to house Standard Steel’s executives and their families, with these apartments still housing people today. One of these buildings is located at the corner of Jefferson Street and Chestnut Street in Butler, with the other being at the corner of Broad Street and New Castle Street. In 1945, Pullman-Standard donated an 8 acre ball park to the City of Butler, known as Pullman Park, which holds its own rich history. An interesting fact, there was once a 9 hole private golf course located near the former Lyndora School.
The Forged Steel Wheel Company was the impetus for what is now AK Steel. Hansen started the Forged Steel Wheel Company. It was then sold to Columbia Steel. Subsequent owners are ARMCO, manufacturing flat rolled steel products, and today as AK Steel. The steel sheets for the cars came out of the steel mills in Pittsburgh, along with other regional mills. There was a tremendous amount of business done in western PA just based on Pullman-Standard.
At A Glance
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My sister Margie and I started a regional magazine 2 years ago called The Butler Bee which highlights attractions, community events, history, etc. here in Butler County PA. The above is a recent article/condensed history from the mag of a former heavy industry in our town. Though written for a local audience, there are several points of interest for a larger community.
Where my wife and I live in Lyndora, from our front porch we overlook a portion of AK Steel (formerly Armco, it’s big!), and from our back yard we can see the former Pullman site. The Pullman Standard factory is also where the first Jeeps were developed. There’s a closed Kmart in the shopping center where the site is ?. I hated that store…
Can’t say I know a lot about this topic. But I do know I ride ’em almost every day.
I was employed by Pullman Car Works in South Chicago (111th st.) 1975-1977 and transferred to the Hammond Plant in 1978 – 1980. I was the youngest overhead crane operator for the company. I still have found memories for some of the people I worked with at both plants.
However, I can say without reservation, the closed-shop union protected too many dead-beats, including drug attics and drunks. “On-the-clock” gambling, sleeping, drinking, and drug abuse was common — my birds-eye-view became so depressing that I couldn’t continue working there. My Pullman experience was instrumental in changing my political views from liberal to conservative (ultimately libertarian).
While I appreciate the nostalgia of this article, closer examination of the Pullman companies would reveal a dark side of both company management and workforce corruption (including the 1977 strike embezzlement of union funds).
RV, i appreciate the first-hand insight.
here in butler/lyndora in what’s maybe a 1 mile stretch there were, by my quick count and i’m probably missing some, 10 bars that were normally busy for lunch and shift changes that were frequented by pullman and armco guys. open early and open late. there’s really only one left. times change.
good history,thanks–