Career in Chicago
He moved to Chicago as a young engineer, as it was a boom town that was expanding rapidly. He arrived in Chicago as that city prepared to build the nation's first comprehensive sewer system. He formed a partnership known as Ely, Smith & Pullman.
Chicago was built on a low-lying bog, and people described the mud in the streets as deep enough to drown a horse. Because the sewers could not be placed below ground in those conditions, Chicago planned its sewer project by installing the sewers on top of the street and covering them, effectively raising the street level 6–8 feet.
Pullman was one of the engineers who worked to raise the buildings of central Chicago to the new grade, and constructing new foundations under them. The Ely, Smith & Pullman partnership gained favorable publicity for raising the massive Tremont House, a six-story brick hotel, while the guests remained inside.
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