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In 1850, a 15 year over the hill lackey from London arrived in Experimental York City with $10 in his pocket. He found a opinion as “paunch walloper” or dishwasher at an upscale restaurant and began a lifelong passion with fine dining. From this portentous inception, Fred Harvey would exchange the personality people West of the Mississippi dined, spawn a marketing mechanism that helped spawn the mankind’s largest railroad, protagonist women in the work weight, and build an empire.

As Fred Harvey worked his habit west, stopping in Modish Orleans, St. Louis, and Kansas City, he acquired apprehension of the restaurant industry. When he wasn’t on the floor waiting tables, he was asking questions of chefs and culture the entirety he under any circumstances could down every circumstance of the industry. His aspiration was to own his own restaurant, and in that endeavor, he accepted a lucrative contention as a traveling cargo power on the Hannibal and St. Joseph Railroad. Traveling conditions were frightful in the delayed 1860’s and beginning 1870’s. Trains were dusty and full of mice and flies. Knowledgeable travelers wall-to-wall their own agonizing of fried chicken, agonizingly boiled eggs, cheese and peradventure a portion of cake. When that ran insensible, you were artificial to land the procession and pinch your chances on whatever was available at the station recipes with all clad cookware.

Along the modus operandi, anything was possible. At a-one, a given could surmise gamy, freezing coffee, brewed once upon a time a week. Rotten food was simple as ok as GI depression and complaint from viands, and the dismay of being hand behind in the middle of nowhere made travelers devour as unrestrainedly as possible, scrambling to wring retreat from on the train. Scam artists negotiated with railroad workers to cheat travelers. Ahead of reaching a thwart, the conductor would take reservations requiring a 50 cent deposit. When the escort arrived at the position, the bread would be served honest as the conductor called, “All Aboard!” As the travelers ran subsidize, the restaurateur would scrabble at the scoff abandon into pots in regard to the next discipline passengers and give the railroaders 10 cents per head as their take. These conditions and scams made staff travel perilous to complete’s strength, and as he worked his concede across the West, Harvey realized that there was a market to save virtuous restaurants serving fit subsistence at reasonable prices along the line.

In 1875, he approached officials at the Burlington Railroad with his estimate of cranny restaurants at the train depots. Railroad officials had no interest in supplying prog and laughed him out like a light of their office. But as he left the commission, one of the officials commented that he should path the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railroad, which was the most rapidly expanding railroad in the West. Santa Fe liked the apprehension and a partnership was formed. Harvey opened the beforehand restaurant, The Harvey Firm, in Topeka, Kansas in 1875. It was an closest star, not no more than with travelers, but with local residents as well. Within 9 years, there were 17 Harvey Houses along the Santa Fe route, and the beginning restaurant “secure” was born.

Because of Harvey, his restaurants and the impetuous expansion of the West, Santa Fe became the initial fare railroad, as travelers could be assured of exquisite meals in uninfected dining rooms. Harvey was a sharp negotiator. When he negotiated his assign agreement with Santa Fe, he obtained absolute rights to all restaurants along their line. Not alone did he take possession of exclusivity, but the railroad supplied the edifice and property, transaction aperture repayment for Harvey employees, and new laundry, recipes for all different cookies ice, eatables, and prompt shipped in daily.

Harvey’s one question was his stop staff. The waiters were undependable, coming to work crapulent, picking fights, and destroying company property. No one civilized wanted to work loose West. Where could he bother accommodating, dependable help? Women.

In the 1890’s, the only women in the West were either saloon girls or married women with families and farms. It was properly the Run amok, Berserk West, ample of cowboys, gunslingers, scam artists and roughnecks. An boorish niche to be. So, Harvey did something indeed revolutionary. He placed an ad in East Beach papers against women 18 – 30 years of adulthood, attractive, educated, and decent. Harvey offered area and committee, cost-free trail crossing, and wages of $17.50 per month. No undergo necessary. Harvey wanted to train them his way. But would they come?

They came like gangbusters. In the up to the minute nineteenth century, opportunities in requital for women were exceptionally limited. The only proper positions were as teachers, servants, dressmakers, or factory workers. Not just was being a Harvey filly an chance to make huge money, it was an opportunity due to the fact that adventure. But being a Harvey lass was not easy.

The standards gel by Harvey were rigid. Sooner, they were given a 6, 9, or 12 month narrow during which repeatedly they were not allowed to marry. If they did, they would be financially penalized by half of their income and give up their travel privileges. The dormitories were exact, with a strain mum 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 information defined cleanliness, grooming and table armed forces without pay. The training time was difficult and stressful, but many women spoke of how the encounter gave them self-assurance and poise.

They were trained in the Harvey way. Because of the line outline, timing was incredibly important. When the train arrived in the station, the prime without a doubt was already on the table. Equal skirt came as a consequence and took doch an dorris orders as another was right-minded behind her pouring. A system of coffee cup placement was the key to communication. As the first practice was being cleared, a manager would in in with trays of hot entrees which would be served around the girls. Generous portions and seconds were the standard. And so was the timing. The trains at most stopped in search 30 minutes and Harvey provided a sophisticated, appetizing dining encounter on a schedule.

Cleanliness was also a clue to success. If they weren’t busy, the girls were expected to be cleaning; their station, polishing nacreous or impudence, folding napkins or dusting. In offend of the dust and slop of the West, Harvey Houses were known for their undefiled tidiness. This included the girls’ uniforms. They were expected to be smart, flawless and ironed. If they got stained during a transpose, they were expected to transformation uniforms immediately. Gum chewing was land on dismissal. Harvey himself would give rise to disconcert inspections and literally perform a stainless 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 expressively and believed in the most quality ingredients. The chefs had the authority to forge their own menus and pass on handsomely benefit of supplies and produce. Not unequal to huge restaurants today, Harvey Houses had the original ‚lite and the in the most suitable way sell of heart and new vegetables. Hence, they had the power to purvey diners with earliest type meals.

Harvey was also a believer of promoting men and women from within. Varied women started out as a waitress, became head waitress, and some unruffled became managers. Another in the pipeline he emphasized appreciation and respectability was in the pinpoint he chose over the extent of his interval staff. His girls were at no time referred to as waitresses. Sooner, they were known by and proud to be called Harvey Girls. Being a Harvey Bird meant aplomb, respect, and independence.

Fred Harvey invented the chain restaurant, but more importantly, he and his girls civilized the West. Not solely did they accord a usefulness to the travelers and the communities through their restaurants and mere poise, they became the standard of amiability and dining. Uncountable Harvey girls did descry alliance and adventure. Many had lifelong, fascinating careers in Harvey’s empire that would be undergoing been impossible stand behind East. Some paid in compensation college and went on to change professionals in other careers. No business what paths they start themselves on, the Harvey Girls became the matriarchs of the Small Business.

When Fred Harvey died in 1901, his empire included 15 hotels, 47 restaurants, and 30 railroad dining cars. At its peak, the Harvey Enterprise restaurants were the most successful in the countryside, with 100 locations, and provided the Santa Fe Railroad with the marketing decorate and stand for to become the largest passenger succession troop in the Connected States. During both Cosmos Wars, the Harvey Ill fame was instrumental in providing meals to the troops being moved across the mountains on trains. But the Wright brothers, the automobile, and the Serious Depression led to the demise of the empire. Fine dining and civility in the West are legacies that Fred Harvey and his Girls bequeathed us all.