In my experience, a community is a smaller group of people who work together, with everyone having different roles and social standings. There are the people who are in charge of keeping the community running properly, the people who work in the community, and everyone who lives there. Also, in a community, everyone seems to know everyone, or at least know what everyone does.
The neighborhood I am from is called Sauganash, and it is on the way north side of the city, about a fifteen minute drive to the loop. My neighborhood is named after Chief Sauganash, also known as Billy Caldwell. He was a Potowatami leader born from a Mohawk mother and an Irish immigrant father. The history of the man behind my whole neighborhood is important to me because I think where I live is the perfect example of a community. It shows that although Chicago is a melting pot of so many different people, and also one of the largest cities in the United States, it can still feel small and more intimate. All the neighborhoods through the city have their own background and story. The people within the neighborhoods form their own communities with associations, schools, community leaders, and stores and restaurants. You are kind of defined by where you are from in the city. But everyone is so proud to represent their own little nook in Chicago. I loved where I grew up, and have always had a strong foundation of neighbors, friends, and family. Everyone seemed to know everyone. The people who work in the community almost always lived there. Sauganash definitely represents what a community is to me.
The Pullman neighborhood at the time when it was run by George Pullman, definitely held these characteristics. It was a utopia for the workers of the Pullman Railroad Cars. The neighborhood provided housing for its workers, with such amenities as indoor plumbing. Company workers were required to live in the company town where there were stores, a church, a hotel, a library, schools, and entertainment. However, the cost of living in Pullman was a lot more expensive than the cost of rentals in nearby neighborhoods. It was its own little community. Everyone worked for the same company, and as one worker said, "We are born in a Pullman house, fed from the Pullman shops, taught in the Pullman schools, catechized in the Pullman church, and when we die we shall go to the Pullman hell." It was a living, breathing community, all centered around the Pullman company, and although it seems like life would be very pleasant there, the cost of living was not very reasonable, and there was no alcohol allowed in the neighborhood. Even towards the end of its run, the Pullman neighborhood definitely represented what I think a community is. The people all had different roles, and they probably all knew one another. They all had similar occupations, and all abided by the same rules. That is why I think this is a good example of a company community.
