Fred Harvey

Frederick Henry Harvey was born to mixed Scottish and English parents, and immigrated into the United States from Liverpool, England, in 1853 at the age of 17. He took a job in New York City as a pot scrubber and busboy at Smith and McNell's restaurant, a popular New York city restaurant. There he learned the business from the establishment's quirky proprietors, Henry Smith and T. R. McNell. They taught him the importance of quality service, fresh ingredients and the handshake deal. Harvey quickly worked his way up to busboy, waiter and line cook.

This early entry into the world of food service would have large impacts later in his life. He moved from New York to New Orleans after 18 months, where he survived a bout with yellow fever, and then to St. Louis where he worked in a jewelry store. In 1856 he married Barbara Sarah Mattas, with whom he would have six children.

Railroad employment

Despite successful employment, Harvey felt compelled to return to the food industry. He started a Café with a partner, and the two ran a profitable business. However, the Civil War soon interfered. The partner was sympathetic to the Confederacy and left town, taking all of the money the two had earned. Harvey soon got back on his feet, working for the Hannibal and St. Joseph Railroad which was eventually purchased by the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad. He ascended the corporate ladder and was transferred to Leavenworth, Kansas, which would remain his home. Harvey traveled frequently while working for the railroads and found himself deeply dissatisfied with the food served to travelers.

Entrepreneurship

Harvey discovered his calling when in 1873, he began a business venture with Jasper "Jeff" S. Rice to set up two eating houses two hundred and eighty miles apart along the Kansas Pacific Railroad, but once again the partnership was doomed.

Harvey's partnership with the Santa Fe began in 1876 when he struck a deal with an acquaintance, Charles Morse, the superintendent of the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railroad. Harvey opened eating houses along the railroad, and was not charged rent by Morse. The deal was sealed only with a handshake, but it would have huge ramifications for both parties. Steak with eggs was served for breakfast, while apple pie and coffee were offered as dessert. Harvey also ventured into the buffet car business. Boxcars were turned into dining rooms, serving passengers with Blue Points oysters, duck salmi, stuffed turkey, and Kansas City steak. 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."

Harvey also gained a boost in business with his incorporation of the "Harvey Girl". 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. Harvey Girls resided in housing adjacent to the restaurants, where they were supervised by the most senior Girl, who enforced curfews and chaperoned male visits. Roughly 5000 Harvey Girls moved out West to work and ultimately marry. Harvey Houses continued to be built and operated into the 1960s. Harvey was the head of the Fred Harvey Company, which operated the hotel and restaurant chain under the leadership of his sons and grandsons until 1965. It was sold in 1968 to the Hawaii-based hospitality industry conglomerate Amfac, Inc.