[177]       

Desert Well Station (Overland Mail and Stage Station)

Lyon County
  39.36406, -119.36549


"It's easy to a little spoiled by US 50. We take great advantage of this fast-lane highway that cuts through the barren plains of this area. And why shouldn't we? What those old timers wouldn't give for such a remarkable path through the desert." -- Journal Entry, June 2008


Along Scenic Drive in Stagecoach, 11 miles west of Silver Springs
* US 50 then south briefly on Scenic Drive. Find this one near the volunteer fire station *

Original Date Visited: 6/19/08

Signed: A major blooper! Although both organizations (NDOT & SHPO) had the right idea, both powers made a simple mistake that still throws off fellow marker hunters! (Unsurprisingly, I get many emails about this one.) Instead of reading "177", the sign reads "117". Both lanes of US 50.

  • Marker 177 and the bleak terrain of north Lyon
  • Marker 177 plaque
  • This one is easily missed on the fast highway in between Dayton and Silver Springs!

Exact Description:
Located approximately one mile south are the remains of a typical stage station of the period 1843-1869, an era of transition between the arrival of the first emigrant wagon trains and the completion of the trans-continental railroad.

Desert Well Station, which was later known as Nelsons, achieved a measure of fame when Mark Twain wrote of his experience there in Roughing It. The original site featured two wells, an inn, and corrals. One of the wells was used exclusively by camels brought to the Nevada desert to haul salt to the mines on the Comstock.

Next Marker:

HAZEN


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 [28] -- Mark Twain 


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