The Southern Overland Mail passed near this site from 1858 to 1861, providing for the first time combined passenger and mail service between the Pacific and Atlantic coasts. Operating west from St. Louis and Memphis, John Butterfield’s company used 1,350 horses and mules and 90 Concord coaches and wagons. The stage traveled at a run despite the lack of good roads, and a signal given when approaching a station would have fresh horses ready and food on the table for crew and passengers. Stations lay 12 to 113 miles apart, and the route was sometimes changed to reach water. Crew and passengers wore guns, and to reduce the danger of Indian attacks, mules, less coveted than horses, were used west of Ft. Belknap. The one-way trip took 25 days, with seven spent crossing Texas from Prston, now under Lake Texoma, to Jacksboro, Ft. Belknap, Ft. Chadbourne, and El Paso. One-way fare for the 2,700 miles was $200. Passengers rarely stopped off because they might not find seats on a later stage. Merchants in Jacksboro and other towns used Butterfield’s light freight service to make mail-order sales. The Overland Stage’s greatest contribution was carrying news, and coaches also brought mail from the west one to 10 days faster than it came by ship. Service ended in 1861 because of the Civil War.