The Harvey Girls: Women who Opened up the West

Author: Lesley Poling-Kemps
Genre: Non-fiction
Publisher: Grand Publishing, 1994
Pages: 320
Rating: Recommend

Synopsis: From the 1880s to the 1950s, the Harvey Girls went west to work in Fred Harvey's restaurants along the Santa Fe railway. At a time when there were "no ladies west of Dodge City and no women west of Albuquerque," they came as waitresses, but many stayed and settled, founding the struggling cattle and mining towns that dotted the region. Interviews, historical research, and photographs help re-create the Harvey Girls experience.

The accounts are personal, but laced with the history the women lived: the dust bowl, the depression, and anecdotes about some of the many famous people who ate at the restaurants - Teddy Roosevelt, Shirley Temple, Bob Hope, to name a few.

Review: Clearly I am fascinated by this group of women, The Harvey Girls, as I've now read three books about them in two weeks. This book was an account of the historical context, history, and eventual disappearance of Harvey Girls in the Southwest. I'm still fascinated.