The Standard of Luxury

By 1863, George Pullman had tried his hand at panning for gold and running a general store in the mining towns out West.  He took his earnings and headed back to Chicago and resumed his improvements to the sleeping rail car.  His original plan of suspending "sleeping shelves" from the ceiling became "upper berths made of a hinged flap that folded up during the day.  He also improved the lower berth to form a bed by sliding the daytime seats together. 

Pullman finished his improvements for over $20,00, setting a new standard in luxury improvements,  and called his sleeping car the "Pioneer A."  But Pullman had created a problem - his Pioneer A was wider than the existing platforms and bridges were built for.  That wasn't Pullman's problem, though as he believed it would make competitors redesign their clearances.

The Pioneer A was part of Lincoln's funeral train from Chicago to Springfield, Illinois in April 1865.  Again, a few years later it carried President Grant from Detroit to Galeta, Illinois.  Both times clearances were widen in those areas to accommodate Pullman's rail car. 

Little by little, Pullman's car became the standard for all.  The demand for Pullman accommodations increased the demand for a uniform railroad gauge so that any passenger could be carried from anywhere to anywhere in the comfort of his own parlor.

Next time...Making it democratic
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Today in Pioneer History:  "On December 5, 1876, a fire in the Brooklyn Theater in New York City, kills nearly 300 and injures hundreds more while watching the play, "The Two Orphans" starring Harry S. Murdock and Kate Claxton.  The fire began when a gaslight ignited scenery behind the stage.  There were no fire hoses or water buckets to extinguish the fire. The star actor died and the building was a total loss.