Dear Reader, thank you so much for reading Book One in the Aprons & Veils series!
If this is your first time reading about the Harvey Girls, know that they did indeed exist. In the 1890s, there were not many respectable jobs for women, so when Englishman Fred Harvey created his chain of fine dining restaurants along the Atchison, Topeka, and Santa Fe railroads, single women without an education, or in need of earning their own way, were given a chance to earn an honest wage without the speculation that they offered anything else but food as a service. With Mr. Harvey’s strict rules about the waitress’s code of conduct, the women were given their independence while still maintaining their good name and place in society under the protective, fatherly arm of Fred Harvey. These extraordinary, brave women became known as the Harvey Girls, the ladies who tamed the Wild West with fine china, good pie, and exceptional service with complete propriety.
For the purpose of my story, I did take some small liberties with the Hotel Castañeda, such as the dining room floor, but I did attempt to stay as close as possible with the historical pictures and references available. This Harvey House is one of the few still standing and has been fully restored to operate once more.
If you enjoyed the story, I would love if you could please take a moment and leave a review or rating! Stay tuned for Book Two in the series, The Pursuit of Miss Parish. Happy reading, friends!