Midway Station and The Pony Express Museum -- by Donna Schlachter

Midway Station -- currently

I started talking about Midway Station in February 2024 (click here if you missed that post). And while the book doesn’t release until August 31, 2024, the pre-order is up to order the ebook version here

During the process of writing the book, I came across some interesting facts about Midway Station. One is that Midway Station is actually on private property.

Second, it was a home station, which changed my story a little, and is contrary to what I posted in February. But that’s the joy of research – sometimes, looking deeper reveals new information and new stories. Now I had to account for riders coming through, riding east or west. Which meant I needed somewhere for them to sleep. And a corral for horses. Land to grow feed on. Papa Wes became a landowner, farmer, and rancher.

And third, the station is less than two miles from Gothenburg. Which means a short ride to town for supplies, the law, or a doctor. All of which get worked into the story.

I also learned that the next home station is at Fremont Springs, which is three miles west of Hershey. And in total, there are only about fifty-seven miles between Midway and Fremont. That means a short day’s ride from one to the other, leaving plenty of time for characters to get into trouble.

Gothenburg Station (NPS)

 

Another fact of note: there never was a Pony Express station in Gothenburg, yet it is home to one of the most popular stations along the trail. In fact, another building was moved from a way station to save the structure from demolition. After a number of years, somebody formed the Gothenburg Pony Express Station.

While not much bigger than a small cabin, the museum is bulging with artifacts, stories, and almost-long memories. It receives about 40,000 visitors per year, every year, as it promotes the Pony Express and shares history with folks along the way. You can check out the museum here

About Hearts of Midway:

Cecilia Hammond works for her aged grandparents, but longs to become a lawman—a law woman—like her sheriff father. She prefers riding a horse to sitting in a parlor, and she despises petticoats and such frippery, preferring dungarees.

Denver Jenkins rides into town, looking for a job and hiding a secret. He hires on with the Pony Express, and is assigned to train with a young man named Cec. Denver has good reasons to change his name. One that could get him killed if the wrong people found out. Hoping that riding with the Express will disguise his real reason for being in the Gothenburg area—cattle rustling—he’s also interested in the pretty gal he spots at the Midway Home Station—Cecilia. She’d be a good addition to his new persona. Then he spots her twin brother Cec elsewhere—in town, and, of course, on the Pony Express Trail. Could he use his friendship with her brother to gain her trust?

Cecilia and Denver strive to keep their individual secrets. Will they lower their defenses and enlist the help of the other? Or will they struggle on alone?

About Donna:

A hybrid author, Donna writes squeaky clean historical and contemporary suspense. She has been published more than 60 times in books; is a member of several writers groups; facilitates a critique group; teaches writing classes; and judges in writing contests. She loves history and research, traveling extensively for both, and is an avid oil painter. She is taking all the information she’s learned along the way about the writing and publishing process, and is coaching committed career writers. Learn more at https://www.donnaschlachter.com/the-purpose-full-writer-coaching-programs Check out her coaching group on FB: https://www.facebook.com/groups/604220861766651



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Resources:

Fremont Springs  https://www.nps.gov/parkhistory/online_books/poex/hrs/hrs5a.htm#36  

 

https://www.nps.gov/articles/000/nebraska-pony-express-stations.htm 

The History of Midway Station By Donna Schlachter—with Giveaway

Midway Station pre-1959

If you look on a map of Nebraska, you won’t find Midway Station. That’s because it is not, and has never been, a hamlet, village, town, or city. Midway Station was one of the stops along the Pony Express route, which ran—and still exists in many areas—from St. Joseph, Missouri to San Francisco, California.

However, if you’ve ever passed near or through Gothenburg, Nebraska, you might well have seen the cabin called Midway Station. It is one of the few original stations that remains at its original location. Much more famous, perhaps, is the Sam Machette station in the city of Gothenburg, which was moved in 1931 and turned into a museum in the mid 1950s which attracts more than thirty thousand visitors each year.

Midway Station with Pony Express plaque

Midway Station was built in 1859 just south of modern-day Gothenburg and expanded in 1860 to its current size when it was contracted by the Pony Express. Originally it was used by the Leavenworth City and Pikes Peak Express Company, then adopted as a stop where riders could get a fresh horse, use the privy, and perhaps get a crust of bread or a quick meal to keep them going to the next home station.

Midway was used by wagon trains along the Oregon Trail to water or rest their animals and emigrants, and sometimes the trains would send hunters to replenish fresh meat supplies. Large and small game was plentiful, as were wild berries in season and plenty of prairie grasses to feed their horses, cattle, and oxen.

By the late 1870s, when wagon trains were replaced in large part by trains, the station wasn’t used as much. In 1879, Henry Williams bought the building and turned it into a bunkhouse or cabin on his Lower 96 Ranch.

The Midway Station has gone by several names over the years, including Cold Water Ranch, Heavy Timber, Smith’s East Ranch, and Pat Mullaly’s Home Station. It is a long, low, one-story cabin, constructed of heavy, squared, hand-hewn cedar logs. When the Pony Express contracted to rent the location for its riders, two additional sections were added to the east. Originally, the log walls sat on a bare earth floor, but a concrete foundation was added later. Wall spaces were originally packed with mud, and the low pitched, split cedar roof was supported by cedar log ridge beams, and then covered with a heavy layer of sod, on which the split cedar shingles now rest.

Many stations used by wagon trains and express services in Nebraska were destroyed during Indian raids, and many more fell into ruins once the railroad was completed. Rumors abound that Midway Station was one that was burned, however, it seems a larger frame house built nearby was destroyed, with minor damage to the station.

In recent years, the family that owns the station has created a museum-like experience including furnishings and artifacts. If you’d like to visit, contact the Gothenburg Pony Express Museum at 308-537-9876.



Leave a comment to enter a random drawing for an ebook copy of Hearts of Hollenberg, the first in my Hearts of the Pony Express series. And stay tuned for Book 4 in the series, Hearts of Midway, which releases in August.

About Donna:
A hybrid author, Donna writes squeaky clean historical and contemporary suspense. She has been published more than 60 times in books; is a member of several writers groups; facilitates a critique group; teaches writing classes; and judges in writing contests. She loves history and research, traveling extensively for both, and is an avid oil painter. She is taking all the information she’s learned along the way about the writing and publishing process, and is coaching committed career writers. Learn more at https://www.donnaschlachter.com/the-purpose-full-writer-coaching-programs Check out her coaching group on FB: https://www.facebook.com/groups/604220861766651


Connecting Online:
www.DonnaSchlachter.com Stay connected so you learn about new releases, preorders, and presales, as well as check out featured authors, book reviews, and a little corner of peace. Plus: Receive 2 free ebooks simply for signing up for our free newsletter!

www.DonnaSchlachter.com/blog

Facebook: www.Facebook.com/DonnaschlachterAuthor

Bookbub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/donna-schlachter























Resources:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gothenburg,_Nebraska

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Midway_Stage_Station

https://www.ponyexpressstation.org/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cX1x3KUuGP4 Video tour

https://www.nps.gov/parkhistory/online_books/poex/hrs/hrs5a.htm

https://npgallery.nps.gov/GetAsset/81ae5996-bb27-4bbe-8229-d5c66bfb8748

Name Origins of the United States Part III

  By Tiffany Amber Stockton

In June, I shared the second set of state name origins. I'm splitting them up into 5 groups in the name of brevity, to avoid bogging down a long post. Besides, it's summer, and most of you likely are looking for a quick, entertaining read. :) You can read last month's post if you missed it.

Today, it's time for the next 10 state name history stories. So, let's go!

STATE NAMES and their ORIGINS

One thing I found interesting with this list is it's almost a 50/50 split of the state names starting with a letter of the alphabet from either the first half or second half of the 26 letters. Montana is the 26th state out of 50 and the last one with an "M." The remaining 24 states come from the latter half of the alphabet. It would have been fun to see 25 of the states start with letters in the first half of the alphabet and the other 25 from the second half, but we're close!

Massachusetts comes directly from the Algonquian word Massachusett that references the people living in the area, and means "at the large hill."

Michigan is also based on an Algonquin word, meshi-gami, meaning "big lake."

Minnesota, like many other Midwest states, comes from a Native American language. In this case, the Dakota word mnisota means "cloudy, milky water."

Mississippi literally means "big river" in Algonquin Ojibwa, although it’s based on the French variation of the word.

Missouri relates to the Algonquin word wimihsoorita, which translates to "people of the big canoes."

Montana has some Spanish flair that links back to the Latin mons, for "mountains."

Nebraska stems from the Sioux name for the Platte River, omaha ni braska, meaning "flat water."

Nevada comes from the Spanish name of nieve or nevara for the surrounding Sierra Nevada mountain range, which essentially means "snowy mountains," or "snowcapped."

New Hampshire is the first of many states and cities named as new outposts of other parts of the world. In this case, Hampshire was a county in Southampton, England.

New Jersey was coined by Sir George Carteret of the Channel Island of Jersey.

And that's all for today. If you're like me and LOVE puzzles, download this PDF for some puzzle challenge fun. You might be able to solve it on your own without reading the rest of the blogs in this set, or you can save it and add to it in future months. :)

NOW IT'S YOUR TURN:

* Which one of these states was the most fascinating to you?

* Do you live in any of the 10 featured states this month? If so, do you have any other unique tidbits about your state?

* What do you think might be the origin of any of the other 20 states? (You'll learn about them throughout the rest of the year.)

** This note is for our email readers. Please do not reply via email with any comments. View the blog online and scroll down to the comments section.

Leave answers to these questions or any comments you might have on this post in the comment box below. For those of you who have stuck around this far, I'm sending a FREE autographed book to one person every month from the comments left on each of my blog posts. You never know when your comment will be a winner! Subscribe to comments so you'll know if you've won and need to get me your mailing information.

Come back on the 9th of August for my next foray into historical tidbits to share.

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BIO

Tiffany Amber Stockton has been crafting and embellishing stories since childhood, when she was accused of having a very active imagination and cited with talking entirely too much. Today, she has honed those skills to become an award-winning, best-selling author and speaker who is also a professional copywriter/copyeditor. She loves to share life-changing products and ideas with others to help improve their lives in a variety of ways.

She lives with her husband and fellow author, Stuart Vaughn Stockton, along with their two children and four cats in southeastern Kentucky. In the 20 years she's been a professional writer, she has sold twenty-six (26) books so far and is represented by Tamela Murray of the Steve Laube Agency. You can find her on Facebook and GoodReads.