The
Pullman Palace Car Company, founded by
George Pullman, manufactured
railroad cars in the mid-to-late 19th century through the early decades of the 20th century, during the boom of railroads in the United States. Its workers initially lived in a planned worker community (or "
company town") named
Pullman. Pullman developed the
sleeping car which carried his name into the 1980s. Pullman did not just manufacture the cars: He also operated them on most of the railroads in the United States, paying railroad companies to couple the cars to trains. The labor union associated with the company, the
Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters, which was founded and organized by
A. Philip Randolph, was one of the most powerful African-American political entities of the 20th century. The company also built thousands of
streetcars and
trolley buses for use in cities.