Working on the Railroad: Pullman Porters and Maids

Janice Lovelace, PhD
May 5, 2023
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About this webinar

The Pullman Company was one of the leading employers of African Americans, primarily male Porters, who worked on the railroad in the late 19th and early 20th century. This presentation will look briefly at the general growth of the railroad as well as the Pullman Company which built rail cars and rented them to rail companies. Pullman hired primarily African American men and women to staff the dining and sleeping cars. What was the job like and what were lives like for the Porters and Maids? How do we find records of ancestors who were Pullman Porters or Maids?

About the speaker

Janice Lovelace is a genealogical researcher, educator, author, and lecturer, with over thirty years of experience. She completed the Genealogy and Family History certificate at the University of...
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Comments (25)

Sort byNewest
  1. BA
    Beverly Anderson
    2 years ago

    Excellent, as usual!

  2. MC
    Maria Capaldi
    2 years ago

    Janice Lovelace's webinar today was great, I really learned a lot! Thank you!

  3. WV
    Webinar Viewer
    2 years ago

    Provided lots of information about the railroads and Pullman porters

  4. WV
    Webinar Viewer
    2 years ago

    Excellent topic. I learned so much about the Pullman company, the Porters and Maids on their cars.

  5. LB
    Luester Blair
    2 years ago

    Excellent! I learned information that I had not been aware of before, such as the maids on trains, who Pullman was, and what was done to try to break the union.

  6. DO
    Dusty Oess
    2 years ago

    my pepole used the rail road to move there farm from Iowato North Dakota

  7. WV
    Webinar Viewer
    2 years ago

    I hadn't known anything about the life of a Pullman porter, or the story behind Pullman sleeping cars.

  8. XM
    Xana Miller
    2 years ago

    Great webinar.

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