Near Hot Springs in Fall River County, South Dakota — The American Midwest (Upper Plains)

Wood Stage Station

Sydney to Deadwood Trail

October 17, 2021

1. Wood Stage Station Marker

Inscription. Approximately 125 yards east of this spot the Wood Stage Station served as a stop on the Sydney to Deadwood Trail. This station offered the first glimpse of the Black Hills to travelers seeking their fortune in the newly opened gold fields. The station, in operation from 1876 to 1888 was run by Lt. William Wood and his wife Susanna (Friday) and their four children — Ruth, St. Clair, Paul, and Leo. Lt. Wood had served as aide-de-camp to General Custer during his expedition to the Black Hills in 1874. After mustering out of the army in 1875, Wood got his start in the stage business by building a stage depot in Deadwood in 1876. This stage station, in addition to the standard facilities for handling the horses, stage coaches, and wagons passing along the trail, offered a dining room for the drivers and passengers on the stage line. During the height of travel along the trail in 1878-79, it is estimated that over 25 million pounds of freight passed the station on its way to settlers in the Black Hills.

Erected 2008 by Jedediah Smith Corral of Westerners with assistance from Deadwood HPC. (Marker Number 700.)

Topics and series.

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This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Roads & Vehicles • Settlements & Settlers. In addition, it is included in the South Dakota State Historical Society Markers series list. A significant historical year for this entry is 1876.

Location. 43° 18.251′ N, 103° 33.811′ W. Marker is near Hot Springs, South Dakota, in Fall River County. It is on State Highway 71 0.1 miles north of County Road 71D, on the right when traveling north. The marker is located just south of a bridge over the Cheyenne River. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Hot Springs SD 57747, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in West River.

It is also in the American Black Hills,

in the Lewis & Clark Corridor,

on the prairies,

and on the Northern Plains.

Globally, it is in North America,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once Rupert’s Land

and also the Louisiana Purchase.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 10 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies: Fire on the Edge (approx. 2.2 miles away);

Wood Stage Station Marker, from the south image. Click for full size.

October 17, 2021

2. Wood Stage Station Marker, from the south

John Stevenson Robertson: Pioneer Horticulturalist (approx. 8 miles away); Mammoth Site of Hot Springs, SD (approx. 9.1 miles away); Leslie Jensen Scenic Drive (approx. 9½ miles away); Hot Springs, SD (approx. 9½ miles away); a different marker also named Leslie Jensen Scenic Drive (approx. 9.9 miles away); Sandstone Architecture of Hot Springs, SD (approx. 10 miles away); Historic Wood Jail (approx. 10 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Hot Springs.

Another marker is no longer nearby. An Old Jail (was approx. 10 miles away but has been replaced with another marker now near it).

Wood Stage Station Marker, from the north image. Click for full size.

October 17, 2021

3. Wood Stage Station Marker, from the north

Area east of marker image. Click for full size.

October 17, 2021

4. Area east of marker

Credits. This page was last revised on October 23, 2021. It was originally submitted on October 22, 2021. This page has been viewed 507 times since then and 37 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4. submitted on October 22, 2021. • J. Makali Bruton was the editor who published this page.