Multi-State National Historic Trails (Non-Units)[A-K]-NPS|Travel

Butterfield Overland National Historic Trail (Arizona, Arkansas, California, Missouri, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Texas)

3/13/2024 From there we headed up to Decatur for a couple more stops, first, a Butterfield Overland Trail (NHT) marker. This is an historic plaque on a little pillar, and with some little Texas flags - more than just a classic sign. In 1857 John Butterfield established an overland mail and passenger stagecoach route between the eastern U.S. and growing settler populations in the Far West. What became known as the Butterfield Overland Trail began from two eastern termini on the Mississippi River at St. Louis and Memphis and ended at its western terminus in San Francisco.

Nice little marker area

Ken by ...

... the interpretive plaque

3/14/2024 Today’s travel is a long drive with about 25 stops. Many of them are brief stops for signs and markers along the BOT, which we will follow down to Fort Stockton. Signs are the basic state information signs, all of which have some reference to the BOT. The markers are squat little pillars with the Texas star on front and a plaque on top, like we saw last night. We also hit a number of forts, positioned along a line to defend and support the region against threats including Native American. Not surprisingly, the BOT made use of the forts as rest and replenishment stops. ... [Bridgeport] BOT Sign “Republic of Texas’ Santa Fe Expedition in Wise County” ... BOT Sign “Toll Bridge and Old Bridgeport” ... Fort Richardson ... BOT Marker “Fort Richardson” at a former “Gulf, Texas & Western Railroad Depot” ... BOT Sign “Jack County” at Jack County Courthouse. ... Fort Belknap ... [Between Towns] BOT DAR Monument. “The Trail of the Butterfield Overland Mail” BOT Fort Phantom Hill. The fort was established in 1851 as part of the line of forts in Texas to protect migrants passing through the state on their way to California. This is a sprawling area with ruins of the fort buildings (mostly just the chimneys) but there was an interpretive kiosk and we enjoyed walking the trails among the prickly pears in beautiful weather. ... BOT Sign “Valley Creek Station” BOT Marker “Route of the Southern Overland Mail Line” ... [San Angelo] BOT Sign “Original Tom Green County” at Tome Green County Courthouse Fort Concho NHL. A U.S. Army installation established in 1867 at the confluence of the North and South Concho Rivers, on the routes of the Butterfield Overland Mail Route and Goodnight–Loving Trail, and an active military base for the next 22 years. We were near closing time here, but still could walk around the large rectangular fort area, with a long stretch of enlisted men’s barracks along one side of the parade ground and nicer home-like officers' quarters along the other. ... [McCamey] After one more BOT Sign “Castle Gap” before town, we reached McCamey ...

Me by the ...

... "Republic of Texas ..." sign

Our shadows check out the sign ...

... "Toll Bridge and Old Bridgeport" ...

... and Ken poses by it

Former railroad depot ...

... with marker ...

... and Fort Richardson info

Sign "Jack County" ...

... with me at Jack County Courthouse

BOT DAR monument ...

... Trail of the Butterfield Overland Mail

Fort Phantom Hill pavilion ...

... with interpretive info

Remains of old buildings ...

... but mostly chimneys

Me by an old wagon

A selfie with the grounds

Ken by ...

... "Valley Creek Station"

Informational area ...

... with marker for "Route of the ...

... Southern Overland Mail Line"

Ken by the marker

Tom Green County Courthouse

Me by sign for ...

... "Original Tom Green County"

The sign for ...

... Fort Concho

Ken by NHL plaque ...

... and "Fort Concho" sign

I get low for ...

... a barracks view

Parade grounds and officers' quarters

One last sign ...

... for "Castle Gap" ...

... with me

3/15/2013 [Fort Stockton] Another short juke to James Rooney Memorial Park for a couple of BOT signs, one standard interpretive-style. ... [Pecos] BOT Sign. “Emigrants’ Crossing” This among a slew of other historic signs of similar design, all with the long text that we have experienced with these Texas signs.

Me in James Rooney Park ...

... and "Comanche Springs"

Little mention of BOT

The park area with signage ...

... about Comanche Springs and ...

... 1878 Koeler's Store

The store today

Pecos signs ...

... with Ken by ...

... "Emigrants' Crossing"

California National Historic Trail (California, Colorado, Idaho, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, Oregon, Utah, Wyoming)

9/22/2013 ... then moved on to Guthrie Park in Dallas for a roadside kiosk on the Applegate part of the California NHT [OR].

The Trail sign

The little park ...

... with interpretive signage

5/24/2014 ... a half hour one-way detour to Leonard Rockshelter NHL ... We also lucked out in that there was California NHT [NV] information here, since the trail crossed nearby, as well as a second route which crossed the road we took here (Carson Route), part of the deadly Forty Mile Desert section of the trail.

Nice little CA Trail exhibit

A very faded map and trail info ...

... with trail logo

Crossing the Forty Mile Desert

5/25/2014 On the way back from Fernley we spotted an info sign and small exhibit for Ragtown on the Carson Route of the California NHT [NV]. ... to the Fort Churchill area. We first stopped at the Buckland’s PE Station in an old house that was built on the same spot as the original cabin (also on the California NHT). After some time operating at that site the PE station stop had moved over to nearby Fort Churchill (NHL), where we went next. ... [Dayton] After parking on pavement as far as we could go, we walked on one of two dirt paths we could choose from looking for trail info. Not seeing it we crossed over to the other trail and headed back, when Ken spotted the “T-bar” with official trail info - yay!

Ragtown exhibit on the Carson Route

Ragtown info

Hard to believe people got through this

Buckland's PE and Emigrants Trails site

Details of the marker ...

... and PE picture

Buckland's informative signage

The old house on the trails

Dayton T-Bar

Details on the trail ...

... and the logo

Success!

Kinda sorta see the trail?

5/22/2015 Heading out of town we tried unsuccessfully to find where the California NHT crossed, then stopped at a very cool LH stone bridge below, and next to, the modern road. As we pulled into the parking for the bridge, a few feet away right in front of the car was - a T-bar for the California trail! ... Sportsman’s Hall PE Station. Once again, as we pulled into the parking spot where we would take our photos and eat our lunch, we saw a T-bar for the California NHT.

Ken and me by the T-bar ...

... and a close-up

The historical info ...

... and the emblem

Lunch on the trail!

The T-bar and our car

Historical info ...

... and the same emblem

Captain John Smith Chesapeake National Historic Trail (Virginia, Maryland, Delaware, District of Columbia, Pennsylvania, New York)

11/8/2008 Drove to Annapolis and parked by the City Dock. Did a little shopping, then walked around the Dock area, which is in the John Smith Chesapeake NHT [MD] [and Chesapeake Bay Gateways Network and Colonial Annapolis Historic District].

A tall ship at the dock

9/20/2014 On the road west into Maryland to Chestertown and parked near the Chester River. We checked out the Custom House and a couple of homes on a very quaint street, part of the Chestertown NHLD. This was the chief port for tobacco and wheat on the Eastern Shore of Maryland between 1750 and 1790, and has a collection of more than fifty Georgian style town houses. We walked down to and along the river (on the Chester River Water Trail) on a gorgeous day and enjoyed checking out the Schooner Sultana and others. This area is on the Captain John Smith Chesapeake NHT [MD], and in the Chesapeake Bay Gateways and Watertrails Network.

The Custom House

One of many pretty homes

A sentry by the dock

Inofrmative signage ...

... with Trail logo

The Sultana

Cool details

Lots of rigging

A view of the shoreline

4/13/2018 El Camino Real de los Tejas NHT Marker. In the early 1900s the Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) executed a project to commemorate the trail by placing granite markers approximately every five miles along the trail. The San Antonio missions are also along the NHT. ... El Camino Real de los Tejas NHT. This was another of the many DAR markers, and not knowing we’d spot the earlier one, Ken had researched this one located in the very nice San Pedro Springs Park. ... Spanish Governor’s Palace NHL. The last visible trace of the Presidio San Antonio de Bexar, which protected five missions and a civil settlement, and the only remaining example in Texas of an aristocratic 18th-century Spanish Colonial town house. This is also on the Camino Real NHT [TX].

A marker ...

... near the mission

Another marker ...

... in San Pedro Springs Park

A sign for ...

... the NHL

On the way to Fort Jesup ...

... the NHT sign

4/30/2014 Continuing south I got off into Picacho Peak State Park. This is a nice park at the base of, well, Picacho Peak, with Saguaro and other cactus all over. I parked at the end of the park road for a site on the Juan Bautista de Anza NHT [AZ] – Camp 21, at El Aquituni, a known watering spot.

The State Park sign

The eponymous Peak

One sign pane of Trail info ..

... and another

A look out over the trail area

5/24/2015 Presidio of San Francisco In an effort to get something more official for the NHT, we drove a short way and, after some creative tight parking and a short walk in a park, found a plaque about a JBdA campground.

The rock in the park

Me staking claim

The rock ...

... and historical info plaque

4/7/2019 Sonoran Desert National Monument ... We stopped at Riverside Park and took a nice trail along the Colorado River which coincided with the Juan Bautista de Anza NHT [AZ], including some signage from the NPS and a good official blaze.

National Historic Trails (Non-Units) - Multi-State[A-K]