(LETCHER, South Dakota) Attendees
at the 2018 Cheyenne Frontier Days will have the chance to see a Yellowstone
Stagecoach, which was completely restored and refurbished by Hansen Wheel &
Wagon Shop (HWWS), of Mitchell, South Dakota, on behalf of the Cheyenne
Frontier Days Old West Museum in Cheyenne, Wyo.
Acquired by Cheyenne Frontier
Days parade chairman George Jones in 1928, this Yellowstone Stagecoach was once
a fixture on the trails of Yellowstone National Park (YNP). Built by famed
stagecoach maker Abbott-Downing of Concord, NH, this namesake coach was
specifically designed to give travelers the most comfortable ride for
sightseeing and was the first vehicle of its kind to bring visitors through the
park.
“America wanted to see Yellowstone in all of its glory,
and taking a trip on one of these coaches was the best way to do it at the
time,” said Doug Hansen, HWWS
owner and founder. “The coach was designed to offer full visibility for
everyone on board. All seats were forward facing, and the sides were completely
open. The leather thorough braces offered a smooth ride over the rough terrain
of the park, and the coach was equipped with storage in the front and back and
under the seats for overnight bags. In the case of bad weather, tourists were
protected with roll down storm curtains and lap blankets, and they traveled in
comfort sitting on plush tufted leather seats stuffed with curled horse hair.
The driver handling the lines was more open to the elements, but the prime
seats for observing the park were for two lucky passengers who could sit up
front next to him.”
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Yellowstone tourism in the early 1900s was a
grand adventure for tourists who traveled from the East coast to experience the
breathtaking views of the Wild West. (Public Domain Photo)
View the high res image here: https://www.nps.gov/features/yell/slidefile/history/1872_1918/transportation/Images/02833.jpg
Pulled by six horses, the
observation coach could carry 11 passengers. Wheels had to be greased every 50
miles, and the coach was equipped with brakes on the rear wheels. Features
included; fringe top with side curtains, front and rear leather boots for
luggage, lamp mounts for candle lamps, a retaining rail around driver’s position, and a lap
apron for the driver and dusters for the passengers. The coach rode on leather
suspension called “thorough braces.”
In debilitated shape after a
century of use, the Cheyenne Frontier Days Old West Museum commissioned HWWS to
bring this Yellowstone Stagecoach back to life, maintaining the integrity of
the vehicle and preserving the many historical details for parade viewers and
participants to enjoy every July.
From start to finish, the HWWS
team dedicated 687 hours to restore the vehicle. An additional 127.5 hours were
spent striping and lettering the coach with the traditional gold leaf.
“There is 225 feet of thorough brace leather supporting
the coach, said Leah Murray, HWWS sales and project manager. “It took five cow hides
to replace the new boots (luggage compartments located at the front and back of
the wagon), 40 board feet of lumber, 20 pounds of steel, and we spent a total
of 462 hours just prepping and painting the coach.”
HWWS made several discoveries
while restoring the coach, including a serial number, 22372, stamped at various
locations throughout the vehicle, along with the blacksmith’s name, J.A. Gervais,
who was the lead blacksmith for Abbott-Downing, confirming the maker’s identity.
Additionally, the number “97” could be found printed
under the driver’s seat riser. This number indicated the fleet number,
and a ticket purchased at the entrance of YNP would include an assigned fleet
number that would direct tourists to the coach they would ride during their
journey through the park.
“Restoring wagons is similar to the work archeologists
do in trying to discover information about lost populations of people,” explained Doug Hansen. “This craft is based on a lost art and a lost industry,
so it requires hours of historical research from old photographs, trade
magazines, journals, artifacts found in museums and our inventory of 50
vehicles that we maintain in our private collection for reference during these
projects.”
So, what was it like traveling
through YNP on one of these Yellowstone Stagecoaches?
Three companies including
Yellowstone National Park Transportation, Wiley Permanent Company and
Yellowstone Western Company offered rides through the park on these sightseeing
stagecoaches. It took five days to see all of the wonders of the park. Along
the way, visitors enjoyed the beautiful landscapes — bubbling geysers, lush green forests, active wildlife,
winding rivers — all while listening to
colorful tales narrated by seasoned stagecoach drivers, who were frontiersman
full of wilderness experiences to embellish their stories.
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| This historic
Yellowstone Park Transportation Company image was used as letterhead for
company communications. (Photo courtesy of Yellowstone Park Transportation Company) |
“We were lucky in seeing seven or eight geysers play,
as our driver knew the signs, and drove furiously to reach the springs in time
for the display,” said tourist Edmund
Muskratt after visiting the park in 1884, as recorded in the book, ‘Storytelling In
Yellowstone: Horse and Buggy Tour Guides” written by Lee H.
Whittlesey.
On March 1, 1872, the U.S.
Congress and President Ulysses S. Grant established YNP as the first national
park in the U.S. For the next decade, traveling through the park was difficult
and only a saddle horse or mule could navigate the primitive trails. In 1883,
the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers began building roads into the park, which
created a boom in tourism and an opportunity for entrepreneurs.
“Stories of the Wild West filled the eastern newspapers
as fur trappers, gold miners and settlers began to head across the United
States,” said Hansen. “When word about
Yellowstone began to spread, people wanted to see for themselves what all of
the talk of this ‘natural wonder’ was all about. This is how the world first saw YNP,
and having the chance to restore one of these original stagecoaches reminds us
about the history of the park and the excited people who traveled far and wide
to see it at that time.”
With its home back in Cheyenne,
visitors can view this restored Yellowstone Stagecoach at every grand entry during
the 2018 Cheyenne Frontier Days scheduled for July 20-29, 2018 in Cheyenne,
Wyo. The Yellowstone Stagecoach will also carry VIPs from across the country
during the four rodeo parade showings scheduled for July 21, 24, 26 and 28.
“When Yellowstone Stagecoaches were decommissioned in
1915 and replaced by buses, the prominent ranches of the Cheyenne region acquired
these stagecoaches for use to entertain guests, and they were eventually
donated,” said Hansen. “It was a privilege to
have the opportunity to restore and preserve this piece of history for future
generations to enjoy.”
The Yellowstone Stagecoach joins
a diverse collection of vehicles in the Cheyenne Frontier Days Old West Museum,
all which represent Wyoming’s early frontier days and exemplify the cowboys,
miners, frontiersmen and railway men who made their mark in history throughout
this region.
To view photographs of HWWS’s restoration process,
visit https://www.hansenwheel.com/custom-showcase/historic-vehicle-restoration/
