Selling the Southwest: The Fred Harvey Company and the Making of Cultural Tourism

A new interpretation of the Fred Harvey Company in almost all its aspects related to cultural tourism in the Southwest from the late-nineteenth century to post-World War II. In the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, the Fred Harvey Company played a pivotal role in crafting the mythology of the “Indigenous Southwest” through its expansive network of railroad hotels, tourist enterprises, and cultural excursions across Native homelands.In this deeply researched narrative, historian Christina Lake examines how tourism, commerce, preservation efforts, and Indigenous creativity converged to shape-and challenge-the enduring romantic vision of the American Southwest. Central to Lake’s story are the diverse groups that influenced the region’s transformation: the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railway, the National Park Service, the Harvey Girls, and the Native artists and communities themselves. Although these groups frequently shared a commitment to cultural preservation, they often d