98. Go to Pullman, IL

I am not sure where I first learned about Pullman but ever since I learned about it, I wanted to visit. Pullman, IL was a company town founded for the workers making Pullman train cars. It is located on the south side of Chicago. I am not sure because the concept of a company fascinated me or the Pullman cars themselves fascinated me but either way I wanted to. 

The hubby is not a city slicker and tries to avoid Chicago at all costs. When Convention was in Chicago, it wasn't feasible to make it to Pullman. When Stacy and I did the first bucket list adventure 20 years ago to Chicago, I didn't think I even realized where Pullman was located. It was a made a National Monument in 2015 and Heather really wanted to go to get her stamp since it didn't work out to go when she was in the area for Nationals. Road trip!

Pullman National Monument is located on the southeast side (E 111th and Cottage Grove) about a mile or two off the Bishop Ford Freeway. Besides having to deal with construction in downtown Chicago, it is a fairly easy drive. It is about 3.5 hours from here. Doable in a day. 

Admission and parking is free. 

Our first stop was the visitor center, once we found it. GPS had us going to the old visitor center, I believe. In the visitor center, we stamped our passports and toured the small museum. 

The museum tells about the history of Pullman, the Pullman strike, and life as a worker in the Pullman community. It is very interesting and interactive.

There is a self-guided walking tour as well as a ranger led walking tour if you're lucky enough to get there when the walking tour is scheduled. We were not. Due to the time constraints, we opted to skip the walking/driving tour. Many of the buildings are private residences. The monument actually spans from 103rd to 115th streets.

We did see what was left of the erecting shops. They are not in good shape. I would have liked to see more but time just did not allow for it. What we did see was just a small piece of the history of the Pullman life. I can't image living and working there.

The hubby was a bit concerned about the area but I felt safe. The area was another reason I didn't really want to go exploring too much even if the police precinct was just down the block. I would have been much happier exploring on a ranger lead tour. Maybe next time.

We came. We saw. We stamped. That was our mission for the day -- get our passport stamp at Pullman National Monument. Mission accomplished. 

Hopefully one day I can go back and explore more but at least I can say I have been there and was able to complete my first original bucket list adventure of the year.