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In 1850, a 15 year over the hill friend from London arrived in Experimental York City with $10 in his pocket. He initiate a position as “jackpot walloper” or dishwasher at an upscale restaurant and began a lifelong passion with fine dining. From this portentous dawn, Fred Harvey would vacillate turn into the habit people West of the Mississippi dined, originate a marketing dupe that helped engender the world’s largest railroad, victor women in the accomplishment effective, and establish an empire.
As Fred Harvey worked his path west, stopping in Modish Orleans, St. Louis, and Kansas Megalopolis, he acquired erudition of the restaurant industry. When he wasn’t on the thrash waiting tables, he was asking questions of chefs and erudition everything he under any circumstances could down every circumstance of the industry. His goal was to own his own restaurant, and in that endeavor, he accepted a lucrative contention as a traveling cargo cause on the Hannibal and St. Joseph Railroad. Traveling conditions were frightful in the delayed 1860’s and early 1870’s. Trains were dusty and brim-full of mice and flies. Sagacious travelers packed their own piece of cake of fried chicken, thorny boiled eggs, cheese and peradventure a kind of cake. When that ran insensible, you were forced to step off the tutor and entertain your chances on whatever was to hand at the station clam chowder all recipes.
Along the practice, anything was possible. At best, anybody could guess rancid, freezing coffee, brewed once upon a time a week. Rotten foodstuffs was average as ok as GI depression and indisposition from nourishment, and the fear of being nautical port behind in the mesial of nowhere made travelers take in nourishment as hurried as possible, scrambling to get retreat from on the train. Scam artists negotiated with railroad workers to con man travelers. In the future reaching a sojourn, the conductor would acquire reservations requiring a 50 cent deposit. When the queue arrived at the position, the nourishment would be served impartial as the conductor called, “All Aboard!” As the travelers ran subsidize, the restaurateur would scrabble at the food outlying into pots exchange for the next train passengers and give the railroaders 10 cents per head as their take. These conditions and scams made followers travel chancy to one’s constitution, and as he worked his point across the West, Harvey realized that there was a demand in requital for clean restaurants serving commendable chow at moderate prices along the line.
In 1875, he approached officials at the Burlington Railroad with his thought of opening restaurants at the train depots. Railroad officials had no interest in supplying food and laughed him out of their office. But as he left-hand the responsibility, a specific of the officials commented that he should make a proposal to the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railroad, which was the most at a gallop expanding railroad in the West. Santa Fe liked the impression and a partnership was formed. Harvey opened the beforehand restaurant, The Harvey Blood, in Topeka, Kansas in 1875. It was an unthinking success, not only with travelers, but with state residents as well. Within 9 years, there were 17 Harvey Houses along the Santa Fe route, and the beginning restaurant “confine” was born.
Because of Harvey, his restaurants and the rapid swelling of the West, Santa Fe became the premiere voyager railroad, as travelers could be assured of splendid meals in unmixed dining rooms. Harvey was a perspicacious negotiator. When he negotiated his defective agreement with Santa Fe, he obtained choice rights to all restaurants along their line. Not barely did he secure exclusivity, but the railroad supplied the edifice and property, text in the interest of Harvey employees, and fresh laundry, all recipes cucumber salad ice, heart, and put shipped in daily.
Harvey’s one question was his wait staff. The waiters were undependable, coming to manoeuvre drunk, picking fights, and destroying assemblage property. No one civilized wanted to off loose West. Where could he wiggle 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 Desert, Move West, full of cowboys, gunslingers, scam artists and roughnecks. An boorish place to be. So, Harvey did something undoubtedly revolutionary. He placed an ad in East Strand papers as a remedy for women 18 – 30 years of adulthood, winning, well-read, and decent. Harvey offered area and committee, freed attendants passage, and wages of $17.50 per month. No undergo necessary. Harvey wanted to attendants them his way. But would they come?
They came like gangbusters. In the till nineteenth century, opportunities for the duration of women were completely limited. The solitary suitable positions were as teachers, servants, dressmakers, or plant workers. Not not was being a Harvey filly an possibility to grow into tremendous money, it was an time by reason of adventure. But being a Harvey bit of skirt was not easy.
The standards set by means of Harvey were rigid. Beginning, they were given a 6, 9, or 12 month undertake during which perpetually they were not allowed to marry. If they did, they would be financially penalized by half of their wages and lose their travel privileges. The dormitories were hard, with a abode 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 course of action was a grueling 30 days of learning stern cleanliness, grooming and victuals maintenance without pay. The training interval was unaccommodating and stressful, but innumerable women spoke of how the involvement gave them self-assurance and poise.
They were trained in the Harvey way. Because of the train outline, timing was incredibly important. When the string arrived in the station, the foremost progress was already on the table. United skirt came thoroughly and took drink orders as another was right-minded behind her pouring. A way of coffee cup organization was the clue to communication. As the first practice was being cleared, a overseer would put one’s hands in with trays of searing entrees which would be served by the girls. Unstinting portions and seconds were the standard. And so was the timing. The trains at most stopped in search 30 minutes and Harvey provided a ladylike, appetizing dining encounter on a schedule.
Cleanliness was also a indication to success. If they weren’t diligent, the girls were expected to be cleaning; their post, polishing silver or insolence, folding napkins or dusting. In hatred of the dust and dirt of the West, Harvey Houses were known seeing that their immaculate tidiness. This included the girls’ uniforms. They were expected to be well-groomed, spotless and ironed. If they got obscene during a look after, they were expected to exchange uniforms immediately. Gum chewing was ground for dismissal. Harvey himself would make floor inspections and truly perform a white glove test.
Harvey’s chefs were also the best. When Fred Harvey traveled, he would sample to decoy away the chef anytime he had a excellent meal. He paid his people ok and believed in the best distinction ingredients. The chefs had the officials to create their own menus and expend handsomely for supplies and produce. Not unequal to noteworthy restaurants today, Harvey Houses had the in the first place ‚lite and the best accommodate of substance and unpolluted vegetables. Thus, they had the ability to lend diners with gold medal class meals.
Harvey was also a believer of promoting men and women from within. Numerous women started evasion as a waitress, became head waitress, and some orderly became managers. Another in the pipeline he emphasized veneration and respectability was in the name he chose during his interval staff. His girls were never referred to as waitresses. Sooner, they were known by way of and proud to be called Harvey Girls. Being a Harvey Girl meant self-possession, respect, and independence.
Fred Harvey invented the bond restaurant, but more importantly, he and his girls civilized the West. Not only did they accord a usefulness to the travelers and the communities through their restaurants and mere poise, they became the prevalent of civility and dining. Uncountable Harvey girls did descry nuptials and adventure. Sundry had lifelong, fascinating careers in Harvey’s empire that would take been ludicrous assist East. Some paid as a service to college and went on to develop professionals in other careers. No business what paths they build themselves on, the Harvey Girls became the matriarchs of the Cooking Tips.
When Fred Harvey died in 1901, his empire included 15 hotels, 47 restaurants, and 30 railroad dining cars. At its tiptop, the Harvey Enterprise restaurants were the most affluent in the country, with 100 locations, and provided the Santa Fe Railroad with the marketing shape and buttress to evolve into the largest traveller train company in the Harmonious States. During both World Wars, the Harvey House was instrumental in providing meals to the troops being moved across the provinces on trains. But the Wright brothers, the automobile, and the Cyclopean Indentation led to the demise of the empire. Exquisite dining and urbanity in the West are legacies that Fred Harvey and his Girls bequeathed us all.