Riddle's Station

Riddle's Station was a stage stand on the old Butterfield Overland Mail route in Indian Territory. It was located on the west side of the Forche Maline in what is now Latimer County. The station was named for Captain John Riddle, the operator. Riddle was a mixed-blood Choctaw and a prominent member of the Nation. He served many terms on the Choctaw Council. In 1858, the Council granted Riddle the right to build a bridge and tollbooth across the Forche Maline near his station. Riddle's Station was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1972. "Riddle's Station is one of the more important of the even dozen such stands serving the Butterfield Overland Mail 1858-1861 along its 192-mile route across Indian Territory from Fort Smith to Colbert's Ferry on Red River. Unlike some of the other stands, however, it played a significant role in the development of the area for many years after the Civil War put an end to the service itself." The bridge there was asserted to be the first in the Butterfield route.