Gerat Hollenberg acquired 160 acres of land in 1857 or 1858 with a land warrant given by the United States government to a veteran of the War of 1812. On this property stood Hollenberg Station, also known as Cottonwood Station for its location on Cottonwood Creek; it began as a one-room log cabin with a dirt floor, and five other rooms were later built around it to make it more useful and comfortable. A large stable north of the station held draft animals for sale to passing wagon trains or for use by stagecoaches or the Pony Express, and a blacksmith shop, probably just in front of the station, was important for repairing wagons and reshoeing draft animals. The Oregon-California Trail angled across Hollenberg's property from Marysville on the southeast to Rock Creek Station on the northwest, and one traveler described the road as hard and smooth when dry but very slippery after a little rain. Cottonwood Creek runs southwesterly to a junction with the Little Blue River and sometimes went dry during the summer, but it still furnished water for much of the traffic on the trail. Crossing the creek was easy when the water level was low, although some travelers complained about large stones in the stream bed, but when the water rose, crossing could become very dangerous, if not impossible. The flat area on both sides of the crossing was very good for camping, and in 1857, before Hollenberg bought the property, a government surveyor called it "a great camping point for Trains"; Hollenberg probably allowed camping to continue there because it might bring more customers to his store. In 1872, the St. Joseph and Denver City Railroad built its line across the property on its way toward Hanover, and the new rail line and the old trail crossed near the creek. A checkerboard of straight roads spaced every mile on the section lines later replaced the old system of winding trails, and highways now carry cars and trucks farther in a few minutes than a wagon could travel in a day's journey.