This Bear River crossing was used by Indians, fur trappers, and mountain men. About 1853, Ben Hampton and Wm. Godbe operated a ferry for emigrant traffic. The site later became a home station in turn for the stages of Oliver & Conniver, Ben Holladay, and Wells-Fargo. About 1866, Hampton, Godbe, Alvin Nichols, Sr., Mark Bigler, and others erected the toll bridge, stage barns, and rock hotel. Box Elder County acquired the bridge in 1883. In 1906, rails reached Malad, and traffic through here declined. The station remains one of the best preserved of all stage stops in the Old West.