Fred Harvey (1835 – 1901) was born in England and came to America at the age of fifteen.
- As soon as Harvey arrived, he got a job in a restaurant and started as a dishwasher.
- He learned the business from the ground up and in 1876 began a partnership with the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railroad, through Charles Morris, the railroad’s superintendent.
- Fred Harvey was given exclusive rights to operate the lunchrooms, eating houses and hotels along the railway’s routes.
- Harvey opened eating houses along the railroad, and was not charged rent by Morse.
- At their peak, there were 84 Harvey Houses, all of which catered to wealthy and middle-class visitors alike and Harvey became known as “the Civilizer of the West.”
- His attention to detail, quality and customer service changed the country’s rail travel industry.
- Fred Harvey is credited as the founder of America’s first restaurant chain!
- He created a legacy which was continued by his sons and remained in the family until the death of a grandson in 1965.
Who were the Harvey Girls?
The iconic Harvey Girls were famous for high standards and exceptional customer service.
- Single women were hired and sent to Vaughn, New Mexico, for a one month training class.
- After training, the women were sent to their assignments.
- In most cases, they lived in dorm rooms above the restaurants where they worked.
- Daily inspections were made to insure the girls were not wearing makeup and that they were wearing hair nets and girdles.
- Harvey Girls were closely chaperoned and dating was discouraged.
- He hired women between the ages of 18 and 30 and did not permit them to marry until they had put in a full year of work.
- When Fred Harvey died, there were 47 Harvey House restaurants, 15 hotels, and 30 dining cars operating on the Santa Fe Railway.
- Fred Harvey is also known for pioneering commercial cultural tourism.
- Fred’s “Indian Detours” were meant to provide an authentic Native American experience. Actors would stage a certain lifestyle in the desert in order to sell tickets to tourists.
What is Fred Harvey Jewelry?
Fred Harvey is credited with persuading Native American Indians to create non-traditional, inexpensive tourist jewelry. This jewelry is lightweight and usually machine tooled sterling or coin silver with precise stamped designs including thunderbirds, lightening bolts, snakes, crossed arrows and similar motifs. The pieces often feature a simple, polished turquoise stone and a delicate construction, distinguishing them from heavier, handmade Native American pieces.
- Fred Harvey did not manufacture jewelry himself.
- Manufactures in the Albuquerque area manufactured thinly stamped jewelry to be sold at Fred Harvey establishments, as well as trading posts and curio shops along Route 66.
- These manufactures include Bell Trading Co., Maisel’s, as well as other manufacturers.
- Often times, members of Navajo nation would be hired to run the stamping presses, with the sole purpose of the manufacturer being able to label the jewelry “Indian Made.”
- To view Fred Harvey Jewelry on this website, please click HERE!
