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In 1850, a 15 year over the hill servant from London arrived in Experimental York Megalopolis with $10 in his pocket. He develop a emplacement as “pan walloper” or dishwasher at an upscale restaurant and began a lifelong passion with great dining. From this dark inception, Fred Harvey would become the practice people West of the Mississippi dined, originate a marketing tool that helped imagine the great’s largest railroad, champion women in the animate force, and erect an empire.

As Fred Harvey worked his path west, stopping in New Orleans, St. Louis, and Kansas City, he acquired expertise of the restaurant industry. When he wasn’t on the down waiting tables, he was asking questions of chefs and learning the entirety he peradventure could about every orientation of the industry. His target was to own his own restaurant, and in that endeavor, he accepted a lucrative position as a traveling consignment agent on the Hannibal and St. Joseph Railroad. Traveling conditions were frightful in the up to date 1860’s and early 1870’s. Trains were dusty and highest of mice and flies. Knowledgeable travelers crowded their own piece of cake of fried chicken, agonizingly boiled eggs, cheese and maybe a piece of cake. When that ran minus, you were forced to disembark the procession and shoplift your chances on whatever was at one’s disposal at the station all time favorite vegetarian recipes.

Along the functioning, anything was possible. At vanquish, one could surmise malodorous, distasteful coffee, brewed positively a week. Perverted foodstuffs was common as affectionately as GI depression and complaint from viands, and the consternation of being nautical port behind in the medial of nowhere made travelers devour as hurried as plausible, scrambling to pocket retreat from on the train. Scam artists negotiated with railroad workers to move the goalposts travelers. In front of reaching a sojourn, the conductor would steal reservations requiring a 50 cent deposit. When the train arrived at the position, the commons would be served impartial as the conductor called, “All Aboard!” As the travelers ran underwrite, the restaurateur would survive the scoff abandon into pots in regard to the next trail passengers and give up the railroaders 10 cents per chief honcho as their take. These conditions and scams made train peregrinations perilous to individual’s constitution, and as he worked his modus vivendi = ‘lifestyle’ across the West, Harvey realized that there was a market for clean restaurants serving ethical chow at moderate prices along the line.

In 1875, he approached officials at the Burlington Railroad with his notion of chink restaurants at the cortege depots. Railroad officials had no piece in supplying grub and laughed him out of their office. But as he socialistic the office, a specific of the officials commented that he should chat up advances the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railroad, which was the most at a gallop expanding railroad in the West. Santa Fe liked the apprehension and a partnership was formed. Harvey opened the beforehand restaurant, The Harvey Blood, in Topeka, Kansas in 1875. It was an immediate good fortune, not simply with travelers, but with state residents as well. Within 9 years, there were 17 Harvey Houses along the Santa Fe way, and the beginning restaurant “confine” was born.

Because of Harvey, his restaurants and the impetuous swelling of the West, Santa Fe became the initial voyager railroad, as travelers could be assured of exquisite meals in pure dining rooms. Harvey was a sharp negotiator. When he negotiated his assign covenant with Santa Fe, he obtained absolute rights to all restaurants along their line. Not barely did he take possession of exclusivity, but the railroad supplied the erection and property, transaction aperture repayment for Harvey employees, and fresh laundry, all the finger food recipes ice, viands, and produce shipped in daily.

Harvey’s however mess was his delay staff. The waiters were undependable, coming to task well-oiled, picking fights, and destroying assemblage property. No rhyme civilized wanted to work short West. Where could he pocket acceptable, dependable help? Women.

In the 1890’s, the at most women in the West were either saloon girls or married women with families and farms. It was truly the Run amok, Wayward West, blinding of cowboys, gunslingers, scam artists and roughnecks. An uncivilized place to be. So, Harvey did something indeed revolutionary. He placed an ad in East Coast papers for women 18 – 30 years of mature, luring, polished, and decent. Harvey offered area and committee, free trail passage, and wages of $17.50 per month. No trial necessary. Harvey wanted to train them his way. But would they come?

They came like gangbusters. In the recent nineteenth century, opportunities in requital for women were very limited. The at most suitable positions were as teachers, servants, dressmakers, or mill workers. Not only was being a Harvey girl an opportunity to earn huge money, it was an possibility by reason of adventure. But being a Harvey girl was not easy.

The standards delay away Harvey were rigid. Beginning, they were actuality a 6, 9, or 12 month contract during which repeatedly they were not allowed to marry. If they did, they would be financially penalized by half of their compensation and give up their wanderings privileges. The dormitories were strict, with a strain dam overseeing the girls and a curfew of 10 pm every night. If you on one’s uppers curfew 3 times, you were summarily fired and sent home. The training handle was a grueling 30 days of learning strict cleanliness, grooming and board service without pay. The training period was onerous and stressful, but sundry women spoke of how the involvement gave them self-assurance and poise.

They were trained in the Harvey way. Because of the teach slate, timing was incredibly important. When the string arrived in the place, the prime without a doubt was already on the table. Equal bit of skirt came thoroughly and took tipple orders as another was conservative behind her pouring. A procedure of coffee cup emplacement was the key to communication. As the senior line was being cleared, a boss would come up in with trays of searing entrees which would be served via the girls. Bounteous portions and seconds were the standard. And so was the timing. The trains only stopped for 30 minutes and Harvey provided a refined, flavourful dining experience on a schedule.

Cleanliness was also a indication to success. If they weren’t detailed, the girls were expected to be cleaning; their position, polishing nacreous or insolence, folding napkins or dusting. In spite of the dust and offal of the West, Harvey Houses were known seeing that their immaculate tidiness. This included the girls’ uniforms. They were expected to be smart, unspotted and ironed. If they got obscene during a look after, they were expected to change uniforms immediately. Gum chewing was ground for dismissal. Harvey himself would for disconcert inspections and literally perform a wan glove test.

Harvey’s chefs were also the best. When Fred Harvey traveled, he would sample to allure away the chef anytime he had a superb meal. He paid his people well and believed in the best distinction ingredients. The chefs had the authority to manufacture their own menus and pay out handsomely benefit of supplies and produce. Not unlike huge restaurants today, Harvey Houses had the first acceptance and the most excellently rig out of heart and fresh vegetables. Hence, they had the ability to purvey diners with first extraction meals.

Harvey was also a believer of promoting men and women from within. Many women started evasion as a waitress, became administrator waitress, and some unruffled became managers. Another withdraw he emphasized respect and respectability was in the pinpoint he chose during his stay staff. His girls were never referred to as waitresses. Moderately, they were known by and proud to be called Harvey Girls. Being a Harvey Demoiselle meant self-possession, respect, and independence.

Fred Harvey invented the chain restaurant, but more importantly, he and his girls civilized the West. Not only did they accord a putting into play to the travelers and the communities at the end of one’s tether with their restaurants and stark air, they became the paradigm of amiability and dining. Varied Harvey girls did manage alliance and adventure. Sundry had lifelong, fascinating careers in Harvey’s empire that would obtain been impossible stand behind East. Some paid as a service to college and went on to change professionals in other careers. No business what paths they set up themselves on, the Harvey Girls became the matriarchs of the College & University.

When Fred Harvey died in 1901, his empire included 15 hotels, 47 restaurants, and 30 railroad dining cars. At its culmination, the Harvey House restaurants were the most successful in the country, with 100 locations, and provided the Santa Fe Railroad with the marketing contrivance and bear to appropriate for the largest passenger discipline troop in the Combined States. During both In every respect Wars, the Harvey Ill fame was instrumental in providing meals to the troops being moved across the rural area on trains. But the Wright brothers, the automobile, and the Weighty Depression led to the demise of the empire. Fine dining and amiability in the West are legacies that Fred Harvey and his Girls bequeathed us all.