Temple is, in many ways, the center of the Fred Harvey universe in Texas.  From the late 1890s through the 1930s–which is when the Harvey House here was open–Temple also was the home of the sprawling Harvey farm, which produced all the milk, ice cream, eggs and poultry for the dining cars, eating houses and hotels for this part of the Harvey system, which extended all the way to Galveston.

I had visited Temple several years ago on a research trip (I was actually in the area covering Iraw War widows at nearby Fort Hood for Glamour) and at the time wondered if the Fred book would ever get done.  So it was wonderful to return finished book in hand, and so warmly welcomed by the energetic director of the Railroad & Heritage Museum at the Temple depot, Judy Covington, who has big plans for the wonderfully preserved building and the city’s Harvey heritage.  And there is no reason why she and her colleagues can’t, in the next couple years, really put Temple on the Harvey map, and make it a more regular stop on the Tour de Fred (you can also get there by passenger rail, which isn’t true any longer for a lot of Harvey locations.) It’s a great central location from which to tell especially the Texas Harvey story, but they also have all the photos and blueprints of the farm (and some members, who I met, who remember the farm) which gives them a chance to really explore how the Harvey company changed the way people ate and prepared food. (The other major Harvey farms were in Emporia, KS and Del Rio, AZ.) And there appears to be a lot of local support for what they are doing at the museum, which is great to see.

We had a terrific luncheon event there, followed by a signing and then a visit to the building nearby that houses their model trains–where I saw the model one volunteer (pictured) had done of the old Harvey House building (which, sadly, is no more; it’s the green structure right in front of him.) Thanks again to Judy and her staff, who have already invited me back in May for a Harvey event there featuring the fabulous Winslow Harvey Girls, and much more. Stay tuned for more info!

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