The Bismarck-Deadwood Stage Trail passed this point as part of a route extending about 240 miles from northeast to southwest. In 1877, the Dakota Territorial Legislature commissioned its survey for carrying passengers and freight between Bismarck, the western terminus of the Northern Pacific Railroad, and Deadwood. Rich mineral deposits in the Black Hills had been confirmed by an 1874 expedition led by General George Custer. The first four-horse Concord stagecoaches of the Northwestern Express, Stage and Transportation Company began traveling from Bismarck in April 1877, with daily service operating by May. A typical trip took 36 hours, and a one-way ticket cost $23. The line used as many as 26 stagecoaches and more than 200 teams, along with mule and oxen wagons for freight, and it was supported by twenty relay stations and two overnight stations. After a shorter trail to the Black Hills opened from Pierre, official traffic abandoned the Bismarck route by late 1880, though the trail continued to serve local ranchers and settlers until a modern road system developed.