"The Challenge"

Hansen Wheel & Wagon was honored to have been chosen as the builder of the custom replica stagecoach for The Banning Museum. After nearly 2,100 hours, the intricately detailed Western Concord Stagecoach was completed the first of December!

It was put into place at its new home in the museum - just in time for its debut at their Annual Victorian Christmas Luncheon & Celebration on December 5-7, 2014. The "Challenge" also made its first public appearance outside the museum in the Wilmington Christmas Parade the following weekend.

This coach is especially significant to the Banning Museum and the history of Phineas Banning - the founder of Wilmington, CA - who ran an extensive network of stage and freight routes in the region. Hansen Wheel & Wagon Shop was commissioned to replicate the coach based on historic photos and documents provided by the Banning Museum in order to reproduce the coach that was constructed and used by the Banning family in the mid to late 1800's. Special construction aspects and design elements unique to the Banning stagecoach design were incorporated as identifying factors to the coach. The original "Challenge" stagecoach was built at the Union Wagon Factory in Wilmington, CA.

New 2015 Hansen Wheel & Wagon Shop Calendar!

Hansen Wheel & Wagon Shop's new 2015 calendar is just heading out to the printer's and is available for pre-order now!

You may go online to place the order and secure your copy, which will then be mailed out in time for delivery around December 20th. 

2015 Hansen Wheel & Wagon Shop Calendar

Customer Wheel Projects

Whether it's an all new decor wheel or an antique piece, our display wheels are ideal for DIY projects, and our customers have discovered several unique ways to incorporate them into their landscaping, furniture, and even house designs.

You can view more of our customer's projects using products from Hansen Wheel & Wagon Shop on our Facebook page at: Customer Photos & Reviews

Restored Fire Hose Cart

Hansen Wheel & Wagon Shop completed restoration on an antique fire hose cart at the first of this month, and met with members of the Gretna Fire Department when they picked up their cart. This beautiful piece is now on display at the Fire Department in Gretna, Nebraska. 

"Everyone that has seen the cart (hundreds of people ) are in awe of your workmanship.  Some of the Gretna firemen were moved to tears when they saw it.  Many firemen from other departments have asked who restored it. Quite a testimony to you and your incredible staff. Comments such as 'It belongs in a Museum' and 'it is a work of art' were heard more than once. The cart has really become an historical symbol of the 100 years of volunteer fire service to the Gretna community and has created a great sense of pride amongst the current firefighters. We are very grateful..."    Russ Mayer

HWWS Featured on PBS Dakota Life

Hansen Wheel & Wagon Shop - A Letcher, South Dakota, business still making horse-drawn carriages, stage coaches, and wagons the old-fashioned way.

View the PBS Dakota Life video online. 

Hansen Wheel and Wagon Brings Historic California Stagecoach Back to Life

Before railroads and telegraph wires reached the remote cities and towns of the western U.S., stagecoaches were the fastest way to deliver news. People would gather at stage stops and eagerly await the arrival of newspapers and mail.

Their heyday didn’t last out the 19th century, though, and by the early 1900s, stagecoaches had become little more than faint memories of days gone by. The ones that survived ended up in museums or as novelties at amusement parks and in parades. A few were stored away in the backs of barns where they sat silently, slowly decomposing ghosts from the past.

One such barn-find relic was rescued several years back by the Carriage and Western Art Museum of Santa Barbara, California. Originally built in the 1870s by the M.P. Henderson Co. in Stockton, California, the stagecoach carried mail and passengers 75 miles from Santa Barbara to Ventura and eastward through the rugged Santa Clara River Valley to the gold, oil, and cattle town of Saugus (part of present-day Santa Clarita). Besides the challenging terrain, the coaches were under constant danger from outlaws like the infamous Tiburcio Vásquez.

The Saugus stagecoach was stored in the Carriage Museum until the Los Rancheros Pobres, a men’s horseback riding club in Santa Barbara, raised the funds to have it restored by Hansen Wheel and Wagon Shop for the 90th anniversary of Santa Barbara’s Old Spanish Days celebration in early August, 2014.

“The museum and the Pobres knew they had a special coach with strong historic connections to the area’s past and wanted to restore it as close to its original condition as possible,” says Doug Hansen, owner of Hansen Wheel and Wagon Shop in Letcher, South Dakota.

When the coach arrived at Hansen’s shop, Doug’s daughter, Leah Murray, the shop’s Project Manager, set about coordinating with the various craftspeople who would be involved in the restoration. “The coach is what was known as a ‘mud wagon’ meaning that it ran through areas that had little in the way of established roads,” Murray says. “It was remarkable that it had survived 125 years given what it must have gone through.”

Hansen and his team of wheelwrights, blacksmiths, painters and upholsterers spent six months and over 650 hours meticulously disassembling, restoring, and reassembling hundreds of parts, reusing what they could and custom building other pieces to replicate them as authentically as possible. They used Italian naked leather hides to restore the upholstery to its original look and custom-formulated paints to be historically accurate and preserve the patina and graphics of the coach in its heyday.

“When we restore a coach, it’s a lot like an archaeological dig,” Hansen says. “Many times we find things unique to a particular wagon that give us insights into its history.” In the case of the Saugus coach, Hansen’s team found a leather scabbard designed to carry an axe mounted to the front boot. “This was evidence that the trail often had to be cleared of fallen brush before the coach could proceed on its journey.” Other times, Hansen workers have found inscriptions and dates that tie a wagon to specific craftsmen and times.

Throughout the restoration, Murray and Hansen stayed in close contact by phone and email with the museum staff 1,700 miles away. “I was struck by the irony of using today’s instant communication to help restore a part of history from a time when getting information across a hundred miles could take days and involved a fair amount of risk,” Hansen says.

While Hansen’s products are firmly rooted in the past, the company’s reach is high tech through its Magento ecommerce website, http://www.hansenwheel.com. “Our online ordering and secure payment capability allow customers anywhere to shop with us 24-7,” Hansen added. “We’re excited to bring our quality and craftsmanship to wagon enthusiasts around the world.”

Established in 1978, Hansen Wheel and Wagon Shop’s customers range from museums and collectors to corporate marketing departments and theme parks such as Disney and Knott’s Berry Farm. International customers include an amusement park in Japan, a historical society in Denmark, and a private ranch in Uruguay. Nearly a third of Hansen Wheel and Wagon Shop’s business comes from interior designers and film production prop departments. Hansen wagons have been cast in movies such as “Dances with Wolves” and “Pirates of the Caribbean.”

“I’ve been around horses and wagons all my life, so becoming a wagon maker seemed a natural way to bring my heritage together with my love of western history in order to preserve that legacy for the future,” Hansen says. Thirty-six years after its opening, the shop has become the premier builder of authentic horse-drawn vehicles worldwide.

For information about Hansen Wheel and Wagon Shop, contact: Doug Hansen http://www.hansenwheel.com

South Dakota's 125th Birthday Wagon Train - Sept 3 - 20, 2014

Join the Wagon Train

Download the Wagon Train Route Map & Itinerary (.pdf)

Download the Wagon Train Application (.pdf)

 

 

Pierre, S.D. - The route is set for the historic wagon train that will celebrate South Dakota’s 125^th anniversary of statehood.   The wagon train will start in Yankton, home of the Dakota Territory Capital, on September 3 and end at the State Capitol in Pierre on September 20.
Wagon train organizer Gerald Kessler of Fort Pierre has participated in over ninety wagon trains.  He said, “Traveling in a wagon train for 15-17 miles a day is hard work, but it’s also a lot of fun making new friends on the ride and along the route.” 
The route includes stops in 13 towns and several pastures as the wagon train makes its way on roads and cross country.
Each evening along the way, local landowners and historians will present a history of that local area.  Communities and civic groups will be sponsoring evening meals and events so local people and students can see the wagon train up close and visit with wagon train participants.
The wagon train is being sponsored by the South Dakota Draft Horse and Mule Association. The cost is $125 per participant who can then ride any or all of the 17 days of the journey.  The wagon train will supply a wagon master, outriders, toilets, water and buses to move vehicles each evening.   The participants must supply their own equipment, animals, food, livestock feed and other traveling necessities.  All fees and donations will be used to defray the costs of the wagon train. 
Thirty-six wagons and 84 people have already signed up for the wagon train from eight states - South Dakota, North Dakota, Minnesota, Colorado, Nebraska, Iowa, Wisconsin and Kentucky.
People can contact Gerald Kessler at 605-223-2313 for more information.

http://www.125.sd.gov/wagontrain.aspx

 

Hansen-built Stagecoach That Transported Prince William and Princess Kate Undergoes 700-hour Facelift in South Dakota Workshop

 

Letcher, S.D. (PRWEB) July 14, 2014

Doug Hansen and his team of craftsmen at Hansen Wheel and Wagon Shop completed a 700-hour refurbishment of the stagecoach that ferried Prince William and Princess Kate during their visit to the states in 2011. The royal couple rode tally-ho in the fancy Touring Concord Coach owned by Express Employment Professionals at the Calgary Stampede.
The high-profile coach made its post facelift debut at a wedding in Canada in June. Originally built by Hansen Wheel and Wagon a decade and a half ago, the iconic stagecoach is a replica of the coach serving Stony Brook, Long Island in the 1800s, and is designed to provide passengers with a panoramic view from the roof seating positioned 12 feet above ground.
The facelift required that the coach be almost completely dissembled for repairs and refinishing. A show-quality finish was meticulously applied to the stagecoach body and running gear. Ornate striping and lettering, along with gold leaf scroll work and scenic hand-painted murals on the doors, were then painstakingly added. The stagecoach seats were re-upholstered in rich, Italian leather.
Used to promote the brand of Express Employment Professionals the coach is operated by Express Clydesdales Ranch in Yukon, Okla. “The stagecoach captures the essence of nostalgia and is a great marketing image,” said Doug Hansen, founder and owner of Hansen Wheel and Wagon. Other companies that have successfully implemented the nostalgic appeal of the horse-drawn vehicles into their corporate branding are Budweiser and Wells Fargo Bank (also Hansen Wheel & Wagon Shop clients).
Hansen opened up shop in 1978 on the Dakota Plains building and restoring custom stagecoaches, wagons and wood wheels. “I’ve been around horses and wagons all my life, so becoming a wagon maker seemed a natural way to bring my heritage together with my love of western history to preserve that legacy for the future,” Hansen says. Thirty-six years later, the shop is the premier builder of authentic horse-drawn vehicles worldwide.
Hansen’s customers range from museums and collectors to corporate marketing departments and theme parks such as Disney and Knott’s Berry Farm. International customers include an amusement park in Japan, a historical society in Denmark, and a private ranch in Uruguay. Nearly a third of Hansen Wheel and Wagon Shop’s business comes from interior designers and film production prop departments. Hansen wagons have been cast in movies such as “Dances with Wolves” and “Pirates of the Caribbean.”
Hansen renovates vintage wagons and also builds wagons from the ground up, using original historical designs. “We do museum-quality restorations and replicas of historic vehicles, starting with careful research and documentation,” Hansen said. “We use materials and construction methods authentic to the time period to make our wagons as accurate as possible.”
While Hansen’s products are firmly rooted in the past, the company’s reach is high tech through its Magento ecommerce website, http://www.hansenwheel.com. “Our online ordering and secure payment capability allow customers to shop with us 24-7,” Hansen added. “We’re excited to bring our quality and craftsmanship to wagon enthusiasts around the world.”
For information about Hansen Wheel and Wagon Shop, contact:
Doug Hansen
http://www.hansenwheel.com
or visit the company’s Facebook page, HWWS Facebook