The Overland Trail

The Overland Trail. . , The route that later became the Overland Trail was followed in 1825 by William Ashley and members of the Rocky Mountain Fur Company, who entered the Laramie Valley from the south, forded the Medicine Bow River near Elk Mountain, and crossed the divide at Bridger's Pass. In 1843, an exploration party led by Captain John C. Fremont followed Ashley's path and determined it could be used for westward emigration. The portion of the route known as the Cherokee Trail was defined in 1849 when a group of Cherokee Indians bound for the California gold fields crossed southern Wyoming on their way west. , The route did not see heavy use until 1862, when Ben Holladay, who had recently acquired a contract to carry the U.S. mail, relocated the course of his Overland Stage Company to the south to avoid Indian attacks occurring along the Oregon Trail in central Wyoming. For several years, Holladay's Concord stages, heavily loaded with U.S. mail, carried passengers and other cargo along the Overland Trail through southern Wyoming. , From 1862 to 1868, the trail was the principal transportation corridor for thousands of emigrants moving west. Increased emigration led to clashes with Indians. Additional military forts, such as Fort Sanders and Fort Steele, were constructed to provide protection. , When construction began on the Transcontinental Railroad, Holladay realized demand for stagecoach travel would soon diminish. In 1866, he sold out to the Wells Fargo Stagecoach Line, which carried passengers and mail along the trail of another two and a half years. With the completion of the Transcontinental Railroad in 1869, Wells Fargo terminated its service along the route. Although railroad travel made the journey west quicker and easier than before, the Overland Trail continued to be used by emigrants until the turn of the century.