The

Butterfield Overland Mail Butterfield Overland Mail (officially the Overland Mail Company)Waterman L. Ormsby, edited by Lyle H. Wright and Josephine M. Bynum, "The Butterfield Overland Mail", The Huntington Library, San Marino, California, 1991. was a stagecoach service i ...

Indian Territory The Indian Territory and the Indian Territories are terms that generally described an evolving land area set aside by the Federal government of the United States, United States Government for the relocation of Native Americans in the United St ...

was part of the overall Butterfield Overland Mail service (1857–1861) created by Congress March 3, 1857. The route crossed Indian Territory from

Colbert's Ferry Colbert's Ferry was an important Red River crossing between Texas and Indian Territory from about 1853 to 1899. Both the Texas Road and the Butterfield Overland Mail route crossed here. It was located on the Texas Road about southeast of present ...

Fort Smith, Arkansas Fort Smith is the third-largest city in Arkansas and one of the two county seats of Sebastian County. As of the 2020 Census, the population was 89,142. It is the principal city of the Fort Smith, Arkansas–Oklahoma Metropolitan Statistical Are ...

which was the Center for the Overland Mail's' 7th Division. Fort Smith was also the junction point of the south bound coaches with the Memphis mail and its passengers. From Fort Smith the 7th Division route crossed the

Poteau River The Poteau River is a 141-mile (227 km)U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map accessed June 3, 2011 long river located in the U.S. states of Arkansas and Oklahoma. It is the only riv ...

into Indian Territory into the Choctaw Nation at Skullyville and left the Chickasaw Nation at Colbert's Ferry into Texas. There were 12 stage stations in Indian Territory, located from 13 to apart. The total length of the route across the territory was approximately . The Butterfield route met with the

Texas Road The Texas Road, also known as the Shawnee Trail, Sedalia Trail, or Kansas Trail, was a major trade and emigrant route to Texas across Indian Territory (later Oklahoma, Kansas, and Missouri). Established during the Mexican War by emigrants rushin ...

near Geary's Station and followed it southward to the Red River. Although it lasted only from 1857 to 1861, the Butterfield route made famous one of the most important roads in the settlement and development of early Oklahoma and was used until shortly before statehood in 1907. The route followed an old Indian trail out of the military's Fort Smith and was used by the Chickasaws during their settlement west in 1837. Following the Civil War, the Choctaw Council, to improve their economic interests, built bridges and turnpikes and maintained stage stands along their portion of the route.

Stations

Each of the Indiana Territory stations in Oklahoma were in Division 7 * Fort Smith - Division Center of this section of the Butterfield Overland Mail *

Walker's Station Walker's Station was a stage stand on the old Butterfield Overland Mail route in Indian Territory. It was located at the old Choctaw Agency in Skullyville, in what is now Le Flore County, Oklahoma. The station was named for Tandy Walker, Chocta ...

- Located in what is now LeFlore County, it was named for Tandy Walker, a Choctaw chief. *

Trahern's Station Trahern's Station was a stage stand on the old Butterfield Overland Mail route in Indian Territory. It was located about 9 miles west of what is now the town of Shadypoint in Le Flore County, Oklahoma. The station was named for Judge James N. ...

- Located in what is now Leflore County, it was named for James N. Trahern, merchant and stage agent. * Holloway's Station - Located in what is now Latimer County, it was named for the stage agent, William Holloway. * Riddle's Station - Located in what is now Latimer County, it was named for trader John Riddle. * Pusley's Station - Located in what is now Latimer County, it was named for trader Silas Pusley. * Blackburn's Station - Located in what is now Pittsburg County, it was named for Casper B. Blackburn, local trader. *

Waddell's Station Waddell's Station was a stage stand on the old Butterfield Overland Mail route in Indian Territory. It was located in what is now Atoka County, Oklahoma. It is sometimes confused with Roger's Station, a post-Civil War stage stand and post office ...

- Located in what is now Atoka County. * Geary's Station - Located in what is now Atoka County, it was named for A.W. Geary, operator of the toll-bridge. *

Boggy Depot ''Boggy Depot'' is the debut solo album by Alice in Chains guitarist and vocalist Jerry Cantrell. The vinyl edition was released on March 31, 1998, and the CD was released on April 7, 1998 through Columbia Records. The album was named after the ...

- Located on Boggy Creek in what is now Atoka County (in

Boggy Depot State Park A bog or bogland is a wetland that accumulates peat as a deposit of dead plant materials often mosses, typically sphagnum moss. It is one of the four main types of wetlands. Other names for bogs include mire, mosses, quagmire, and muskeg; ...

). It was named for the creek. * Nail's Station - Located in what is now Bryan County, it was named for Joel H. Nail, the station operator. * Fisher's Station - It was located in what is now Bryan County. * Colbert's Station & Ferry - Located in what is now Bryan County, it was named for Benjamin F. Colbert, a prominent Chickasaw tribal leader and operator of the ferry. In addition, the ferry was important Red River crossing for the

and portal between the Indian Nations and Texas.

Sources

*Foreman, Grant
"The California Overland Mail Route Through Oklahoma"
''Chronicles of Oklahoma'' 9:3 (September 1931) 300-317 (accessed August 16, 2006). *Wright, Muriel H

, ''Chronicles of Oklahoma'' 11:2 (June 1933) 798-822 (accessed August 16, 2006). *Wright, Muriel H
"The Butterfield Overland Mail One Hundred Years Ago"
''Chronicles of Oklahoma'' 35:1 (January 1957) (accessed August 16, 2006).

Stations

Sources

See also