I’m a Texas History historian and have spent many hours researching Texas during the Old West days (I classify Old West as: 1865-1890). I think I can offer some answers for you.

Probably the best primary source on stagecoach travel is Waterman L. Ormsby’s 1858 account called “The Butterfield Overland Mail Route”. It’s been re-published a number of times through the years, and other than actual newspaper accounts, it’s a leading insight into stagecoach and mail hack travel.

The Butterfield Overland Mail Route was established in the September of 1858 and stretched from Missouri to California. Eventually it was divided into Northern and Southern routes, but sadly was abandoned at the onset of the Civil War. The trail, however, was highly utilized for decades after it’s official abandonment.

Waterman L. Ormsby was a newspaper reporter who was tasked with detailing the trip from Missouri to California in late 1858. He recorded distances, stage stops, landmarks, and characters in his account.

Typically, to answer one of your questions, a stage could travel 30-60 miles on a good day. At each waypoint, which were generally about 30 miles from each other, the horses would be changed out and the travelers could rest and eat. Most of these places usually consisted of a single floored structure with room enough for overnight lodging and dining rooms. There was a corral and barn, as well as a small blacksmithing station. Often times, the stage stops were also private ranch houses that were getting paid by the stage company as well.

On the negative side though, the stage stops were frequently targeted by Native Americans. In one instance, not long before the Butterfield was abandoned, one of the company’s wagon stops north of present day San Angelo, Texas was struck by a very devastating Comanche raid. The horses were stolen, the buildings were burned, and I think there was even a casualty or two.

Criminal activity against stagecoaches was actually pretty rare, but criminal activity against mail wagons was not. During the 1880s, there was a notorious bandit that would always raid the mail wagons between San Angelo, Texas and a nearby community called Ballinger (which is about 30 miles east of San Angelo).

The bandit, according to eye witnesses, always wore a mask that covered his lower face and dressed in dark clothing. He would ambush the mail wagons, rob the contents, but would generally leave the driver untouched and allow the wagon to be on its way.

Mail hacks were generally easier targets for lone bandits. More often than not, the mail wagons would have more worthwhile rewards in it than a passenger coach, and less guns you’d have to worry about. Land deeds, bank bonds, election results, personal trinkets, etc. were all carried by mail, and thus, the loot to plunder was more rewarding. There are many of the now renown figures of the Old West time period who started out as hired guards for mail wagons. In addition, a large percentage of law enforcement personnel of the time started out as postal guards.

Travel inside the stage wagons was not at all comfortable. Although each stageline had maintenance crews, the roads were almost always water boarded or windswept, and in the rocky areas; extremely bumpy. Heavy rains could force wagon traveling to last several days longer, and during the summer months, the heat and dust of the roads was overwhelming.

The popular depiction of four passengers to one wagon car is, for the most part, authentic. But on longer journeys, there would often be six passengers to one coach. A schedule and stage stops were generally printed on brochures, along with a map of the trail.

It should be an interesting footnote to add here, that most of the wagon roads from about the Civil War onward are still being utilized as county and state highways today. The paths were already cleared, verily maintained, and were also already well utilized.

I think I answered most of your questions. You’ll have to forgive me if I didn’t, I’m on a cell phone and cannot review the initial post without closing the reply.

Hope this helps! And happy trails.