New Mexico History Museum Announces Annual Fred Harvey Week  

October 29th, 2021

Since 2010, the New Mexico History Museum (NMHM) has been presenting talks about Fred Harvey history, which have grown into the annual Fred Harvey History Weekend and the Fred Harvey Foodie Dinner & Auction at La Fonda on the Plaza. Ticket revenue will benefit NMHM, home of the nation’s only major permanent exhibit which combines Fred Harvey, the Harvey Girls, Harvey design guru Mary Colter, the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railway, Native American art, and Southwest history.

This year’s Fred Harvey History Weekend will be held November 12-15, 2021, and will include lectures at NMHM on Friday & Saturday and the Fred Harvey Foodie Dinner & Auction at La Fonda on Friday. And on Sunday, the “FredHead” fun shifts to Las Vegas, NM at the restored Castaneda Hotel with tours and two meals with limited seating: Sunday dinner at Kin restaurant, and Monday breakfast at Bar Castaneda. For more information and online registration, visit https://nmhistorymuseum.org/event/details/4852/fred-harvey-history-weekend. Information and reservations for the Dinner and Auction can be found at https://fredharvey.info/event/fred-harvey-foodie-dinner/.  

Presentations at NMHM will include:

• Best-selling author John Sedgwick on the Colorado Railroad Wars, how the AT&SF won the West, and his new book "From the River to the Sea"


• Q&A with Jean Harvey Vanderbilt on her life in two of the nation’s most important railroad families


• "Deep Inside the Alvarado" – with architect and rail historian Matt Kluge


• "Insider’s Guide to Southwest Collecting" – panel about collecting everything Fred Harvey popularized in America: jewelry, pottery, baskets, rugs, and all manner of the railroad and Harvey collectibles


• "Fred Harvey,Reinvented1948-1968" – the company’s postwar years explored by Daggett Harvey, Jr. 


• “Remembering Steve Wimmer” – sharing memories of the longtime La Fonda concierge and OriginalFredHead, with an update about the new SW History Research Fund created in his memory

In-person tickets for this year’s lectures have sold out, but online tickets are still available.  Both in-person and online tickets are available for the dinner and auction.  Books from the featured authors, as well as Harvey-era books and paraphernalia will be available at the Spiegelberg Shop at NMHM during and following the events.

General information: https://fredharvey.info/event/history-weekend/  

About the New Mexico History Museum
The New Mexico History Museum is a division of the Department of Cultural Affairs, under the leadership of the Board of Regents for the Museum of New Mexico. Programs and exhibits are supported by the Museum of New Mexico Foundation and its generous donors. NMHM is a statewide educational resource, landmark, and destination for everyone who wants to understand the diverse experiences of the people of New Mexico, the dynamics that have shaped our state, and the relationships that connect our region with the rest of the world.

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