Siskiyou County Hoodlums Then and Now: Stagecoach Fear, Modern Theft, and Safer Travel
A broken gate, a stolen tool, a smashed mailbox, or a vehicle key-scratched overnight can make a person wonder if people used to be better than this.
In Siskiyou County, California, we live among old stage roads, mining stories, and town names that still carry the sounds of another century. It's easy to look back at the 1890s and imagine a county full of handshake deals, unlocked doors, and neighbors who knew better than to take what was not theirs.
But the past was not clean and innocent. Siskiyou County had its share of troublemakers then, too. Not just harmless rowdies. Real thieves. Real dangers.
And one of the biggest fears on the road was something most of us never think about today: being robbed while riding in a stagecoach.
Today, a person can drive through Shasta or Scott Valleys or to Southern Oregon for errands, work, school, church, groceries, or a doctor’s appointment without worrying about armed bandits stopping your vehicle on the road. Thank the Lord for that, right?
Travel in the 1890s Could be Scary
Back in the 1890s, stagecoach travel was already part of a changing world. Railroads had shifted many long-distance routes, but stagecoaches still mattered in Siskiyou County, where they carried passengers, mail, valuables, and sometimes money or gold.
That made them targets.
Siskiyou County's roads helped the criminals. Mountain grades, narrow routes, timbered stretches, blind curves, and lonely miles (like Robber's Rock at the summit of Forest Mountain on the way to and from Scott Valley) gave robbers places to hide and wait. A stage could not simply drive away. Horses tired. Roads were rough. Weather mattered. A stagecoach was vulnerable.
The phrase “stand and deliver” had meaning because travelers understood what it meant to be stopped and forced to hand over valuables.
It's no wonder passengers were fearful.
Stagecoach Robberies in Siskiyou County
One thing I've discovered in my research for my current historical fiction novel, "Kita's Courage," is that there were an estimated 220 stage robberies in Siskiyou County from 1856 to 1913.¹
It's interesting to me that the introduction of automobiles and the railroad in the late 1890s slowed stagecoach thefts, but it didn't end them altogether.
The past had charm. It also had sharp edges.
Modern Automobiles More than Convenience
The automobile did more than make travel faster. It changed the feeling of travel.
When we get in a car now, we control our route, our speed, and our stops. We can lock the doors. We can call for help. We can choose another road if conditions look bad. We can check maps, weather, and traffic. We can tell someone when we expect to arrive.
A car is not perfect protection these days, but it gives us a level of freedom and safety that stagecoach passengers didn't have.
That is progress.
A Challenge to You
The past was not as pure as we sometimes imagine, and the present is not as broken as it can feel on a bad day. Siskiyou County has always had good people, hard country, and a few wanton idiots who make life harder for everyone else.
The job now is the same as it was then: protect what belongs to both ourselves and our neighbors', tell the truth about the trouble, and generally care for one another.
Wilson, R. Michael. Stagecoach Robberies in California: A Complete Record, 1856–1913. Jefferson, NC: McFarland & Company, Inc., 2014.
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