George Roberts owned and operated the stage run from Stephen to Roseau during the full tide of movement of the pioneers from the Red River Valley into the valley of the Roseau River. By the time he took over the stage line in 1906 it had already changed from semi-okay to a tri-weekly to a daily service. The stage was operated by Mr. Roberts, from this time until the building of the railroad to Roseau into the day of the stagecoaches end.
There is nothing reminiscent of the old stagecoach days of the West in the run from Stephen to Roseau.
There is no combat with Indians and no attempted robberies. Money for the Roseau Banks was commonly carried as part of the baggage and amounts up to $3000. Although there were plenty of "toughs" in the country in those day, the mail and money both went through without interruption.
Several types of conveyances were used during the period, from a 16 passengers Studebaker wagons to coaches once by the Deadwood line by a Marquis De Mores which were a last use by Mr. Roberts.
Ordinarily four head of horses were used to pull the stage although at times the poor conditions of the trails made it necessary to add an extra team. Teams were changed every 16 miles and a stable of approximately 100 horses which were spotted at intervals along the route, was necessary to operate the line.
When a blizzard interrupted the mail service by train in the area, mention was made of the fact that during the time of the stage line operations, mail service was never interrupted. This furnishes a good commentary on the pioneer spirit of those who carried the mail in the early days. Mail was delivered once daily except Sunday and there were no exceptions for any of the holidays. Whether it matters or not, it is interesting to know that even before the turn of the century, when this country was almost complete wilderness, mail service was more regular than it is today, with all our modern means of transportation and distribution.
The route from Stephen to Roseau was 75 miles long. The stage left Stephen at noon and stopped off at the Halfway House, over night ed then and continued on the next morning to reach Roseau at noon. The actual running time was about 12 hours. The fair was twelve dollars from Stephen to Roseau which included meals and lodging at the Halfway House. From Stephen to Badger the fair was eight dollars. The Half Way House, written in the annuals in early Roseau County history, was built and operated by John Erickson, Charles Oaks, Tom McKibben, Andrew Olsen, and George Roberts.
Charles Pelan, the man who gave his name to the once flourishing town on Two Rivers, was one of the outstanding characters of early days. A "remittance man" from England, his greatest fame lay in the prodigal dispensing of a considerable patrimony in all the saloons from Winnipeg to Crookston. After having taken a spin at merchandising hardware at Hallock, Pelan decided to start a cattle ranch for pleasure and for sport. He purchased a large number of high grade cattle the like of which had not been seen in this new territory, and started off down the road until he came to the Two Rivers ford. This spot pleased him so much that he camped on the spot and began to set up fences and buildings. Pelan tired of cattle ranching as quickly as he did the hardware store but stayed long enough to leave his name permanently upon the map of Minnesota.
Pelan was at one time of very flourishing village with a population of 250. Lofgren's store, a three-story building, did a tremendous amount of trade, and there was a creamery , besides a number of saloons and other business establishments. The death blow was struck by the officials of the Soo Line railway when they decided to route to Winnipeg around the west side of Twin Lakes. Mr. Roberts states that this was done to shorten the distance to Winnipeg and aid them in securing valuable mail contracts.
Sometime before the completion of the railroad lines in the end of the stagecoach era, Mr. Roberts, to meet the growing competition, purchased two stagecoaches of the finest make. One coach he fitted up with a steam turbine engine. These coaches have an interesting history. They were as earlier stated originally purchased for Marquis De Mores at a cost of around $1500 apiece and were used on the line he established through Dakota territory to Deadwood, South Dakota.
The Deadwood lines subsequently made history and have been the subject of a movie. Sixteen of these coaches were used on the Deadwood line and it is probable that the two purchased by Mr. Roberts were those which first broke the trail to Deadwood as they bore the name Katie and Medora, the maiden and nickname of Marquis De More's wife. Mr. Roberts relates that even over the rough trails of the early days, the steam engine had an advantage, as it could travel 10 miles an hour were the horses could only make six. When this team coach was used to was coupled with another coach.
In spite of the increased advantages of speed as the mission was not very successful. It made only one complete trip from Stephen to Roseau and three trips from Stephen to Pelan. This was then replaced by a gasoline propelled car, a more efficient piece of machinery.
When the stage business came to an end, coaches were donated to be displayed at a museum.
But just where was or is Pelan? What type of country did these coaches run through? Twin Lakes can be seen south of State Highway 11. Pelan is an abandon townsite now, So let's look at Kittson County and see if can figure out where is was in comparison to Karlstad, Stephen, and Roseau. If we look at Karlstad, we know that Pelan, was a village to the east, we also learn that Pelan's moved its buildings to Karlstad. This gives us a feel for the route which may have followed. It is known the body of water at Pelan was good fishing.
Imagine... the cradle like ride.. the sound of the horses trotting... the romance!!!
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