The Harvey Girls in Fiction

Fred Harvey (1835–1901) was an entrepreneur who created the first American restaurant chain, multiple locations that served those traveling on the railroad. Beginning in 1876, he began opening restaurants along the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railroad. He hired young women between the ages of 18 and 30, known as “Harvey Girls,” who worked as waitresses, wore attractive uniforms, lived under strict chaperonage, and signed a contract not to marry before a year was up (the imbalance of women in the American southwest during this period meant they were in high demand). Image from CowgirlMagazine.comRead more »