LUBBOCK, Texas (KCBD) – Walking inside the Slaton Harvey House is like walking through a time capsule.
Back in 1876, Fred Harvey’s goal was to provide better food options for travelers traveling by train. He worked to establish a chain of restaurants along the Santa Fe Railroad lines, which ran from Chicago to San Francisco and Galveston to Los Angeles.
Slaton opened the Harvey House in 1912 to provide passengers with quality food. Board member Tony Privett explains the need for Slaton to operate one of these eateries in the meantime.
“In Europe, cities were more densely packed, so it was easier for people to get food,” Privett said. “When they were moving the rails along the Southwest, there were few towns, so they had to stop every 100 miles to refill the engines with water and coal. That’s where Harvey House They’re built every 100 miles. They didn’t always have a restaurant or a town, so they built a town where there wasn’t one, like Slaton.”
The Harvey Girls were also a big part of that history and were the focus of a 1946 film starring Judy Garland.
“This is a great story about women’s migration,” Privett said. “Women from the Midwest were interviewed, hired, trained, and sent to smaller, newer Harvey Houses along the way.”
Slaton’s Harvey House closed as a restaurant in 1942. This was because steam engines were larger and faster, requiring fewer refuelings. It was a passenger and cargo base until it was boarded up in the 1980s.
After demolition of the building was halted at the last minute in 1989, preserving its history became a goal. The Texas Historical Commission has now designated Slaton’s Harvey House as the 40th state historic site. This is part of the commission’s efforts to preserve its history and the building, which is now operated as a museum, guesthouse, and event center.
Privett says this honor and title is extremely important to Harvey House and the Slaton community.
“This is a big deal and it’s a big deal for Slaton. This is a huge deal for West Texas and for those of us who have worked hard for over 30 years. Guaranteed to survive for generations. This is especially gratifying because it will be done in the near future,” Privett said.
“Telling old stories in new ways, and now they’re building their own generations’ stories and history in this building, which they’ll be able to share with their children and grandchildren.”
Copyright 2025 KCBD. Unauthorized reproduction is prohibited.
