The Stant Rhea Stage Stand
Hale Center, Hale County, Texas
Marker Inscription
(6 miles east, on private property) Early settlers in this area kept in touch with the world by picking up their mail at railheads. Federal mail delivery to post offices began when W. L. Tharp took a route from the new railroad town of Amarillo to Plainview and Estacado in July and August, 1888. There were no roads; the round trip took six days. About 1889, W. H. Fuqua of Amarillo, who had a new U.S. mail contract, used a compass and laid off a route with several stations--one at Plainview. He soon added passenger service, but then disposed of the line, which about 1890 fell into the hands of Stant Rhea and Robert Montgomery. Buying out Montgomery, Rhea carried the mail for 19 years. Sidney Stanton--"Stant"--Rhea (1862-1922) was a small, red-haired man who drove wild Spanish mules hitched to a buckboard (or carriage). He made the 240-mile round trip from Amarillo to this area three times a week. With later route changes and better roads, he came this way daily. Six miles east of this spot he had a mule corral and a dugout. Stage passengers and mail patrons used the dugout as a waiting room. Until railroads outmoded his service, Stant Rhea's route and stand were important in the development of the South Plains. (1976)
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
Before roads reached the South Plains, mail and news arrived by whatever route a contractor could lay off with a compass. Around 1890 that route fell to Stant Rhea, a small, red-haired man who drove wild Spanish mules on a 240-mile round trip between Amarillo and this area three times a week, carrying the mail for nineteen years. Six miles east he kept a mule corral and a dugout that doubled as a waiting room for passengers, until railroads finally rendered his stage line obsolete.
Why it matters
Rhea's stage stand is a vivid reminder of how isolated frontier settlements stayed connected before rail and paved roads, and how vital such carriers were to the growth of the Texas Panhandle.
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Related people
- · Sidney Stanton "Stant" Rhea
Themes & tags
Nearby & related markers
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