Harvey Houses of Texas by Rosa Walston Latimer

Author:Rosa Walston Latimer
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2018-12-04T16:00:00+00:00

Consistent food quality was valued as much as quality of service. According to a story in Santa Fe Magazine in 1907, the manager of each Harvey House was required to send a tabulated report at the end of each day. The purpose of the reports was not to assess possible ways of reducing expenses but to ensure that the Harvey standard was maintained: “that the slices of ham in the Harvey sandwiches are as thick as ever and the same thickness everywhere and that the coffee is as strong as it should be.” In Harvey Houses, whole pies were cut into four servings instead of the usual six or eight in other restaurants. The daily reports reflected the inventory of food used in relation to the number of customers served, indicating that portions were up to Harvey standards. Many Harvey Houses operated in the red for years. Fred Harvey’s business philosophy was simple. He believed that profits would come in the long run if excellent service was provided and maintained.

After struggling with cancer for more than fifteen years, Fred Harvey died in 1901 at the age of sixty-five. That year, he owned and operated fifteen hotels, forty-seven restaurants, thirty dining cars and a San Francisco Bay ferry. The eulogy delivered at his funeral was a tribute to his life; however, now we know that it was also an apt description of what the name “Fred Harvey” would mean for many years to come: “Fred Harvey is dead, but his spirit still lives. The standard of excellence he set can never go back. He has been a civilizer and benefactor. He has added to the physical, mental, and spiritual welfare of millions. Fred Harvey simply kept faith with the public. He gave pretty nearly a perfect service.”

Following Fred Harvey’s death, his sons, Ford and Byron, continued to operate the substantial family business. The decision was made for the company name to be simply “Fred Harvey,” maintaining the illusion that the founder was still alive. For years after Mr. Harvey’s death, employees continued to say they worked for Fred Harvey; in correspondence and printed marketing pieces, the company was referred to as “Fred Harvey.” There was some speculation that Ford Harvey, who was appointed president of the company after his father’s death, may have chosen this company name because of a lack of self-confidence. However, with his movie-star good looks and experience of working beside his father for many years, I’m inclined to believe Ford realized this would be a smart marketing tactic. And it was!

Ahead of its time, the Fred Harvey company was establishing its brand over a century before “branding” became a buzzword. The Fred Harvey logo, composed simply of Mr. Harvey’s signature, was attached to high-quality products such as coffee, whiskey and cigars. Fred Harvey fruit preserves were served at breakfast. For a time, Coca-Cola bottles produced in Newton, Kansas, had the imprint “Fred Harvey Newton” on the bottom. Harvey Houses are credited with originating the “blue-plate special,” a daily low-priced complete meal that was served on a blue-patterned china plate.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.