Journey Stories Talk on July 18 Features Harvey Girls
Join the Old Trails Museum at La Posada Hotel this Thursday, July 18, at 7 pm for the next free presentation in its Journeys to Winslow Speaker Series. Museum Director Ann-Mary Lutzick will present “The Harvey Girls of the Southwest” as part of Winslow’s tour stop for the Smithsonian’s Journey Stories exhibition, on display at La Posada through August 4. The Winslow Harvey Girls will also present their Harvey House Trunk Show starting at 6 pm, and the museum’s Journeys to Winslow exhibit is also on display.
The “Fred Harvey” company operated its exceptional chain of restaurants and hotels along the Santa Fe Railway from 1876 through the 1960s. Among its many innovations was the employment of over 100,000 “Harvey Girl” waitresses: single women from the East Coast and Midwest who chose to leave their families, commit to terms of service, and adhere to strict lifestyle requirements. This visual presentation will explore the creation of the Harvey Girls, their life and work at the Harvey Houses and grand hotels in the Southwest, and their impact on the roles of women in the national workforce and in the popular culture of the American West.
Ann-Mary Lutzick has been the Director of the Old Trails Museum in Winslow since 2010. She earned a Public History MA from Arizona State University and worked for the Arizona Humanities Council (AHC) before moving to Winslow in 2008. She met her husband, artist Daniel Lutzick, while coordinating AHC’s statewide tour of the Smithsonian’s Between Fences exhibition, which was on display at his Snowdrift Art Space in the summer of 2008. Lutzick has been a member of AHC’s Road Scholars Speakers Bureau since 2009, traveling around Arizona and presenting on Fred Harvey-related topics.
The Winslow Harvey Girls will also have their popular Harvey House Trunk Show on display starting at 6 pm. The Winslow Harvey Girls are a dedicated group of volunteers committed to preserving the history of the Santa Fe, Fred Harvey, the Harvey Girls, La Posada Hotel, and Mary Jane Colter, the hotel’s architect. Their trunk show features original china used in the dining cars and Harvey Houses along the Santa Fe line, including some original Mimbrenoware designed by Colter.
Follow this “News” feed and “like” the Old Trails Museum on Facebook for the latest details on all Journeys to Winslow exhibits and programs. Journey Stories has been made possible in Winslow by the Arizona Humanities Council. Journey Stories is part of Museum on Main Street, a collaboration between the Smithsonian Institution and State Humanities Councils nationwide. Support for Museum on Main Street has been provided by the United States Congress.
