Mahaffie Stagecoach Stop and Farm

    Mahaffie Stagecoach Stop and Farm is one of the few remaining Santa Fe Trail stagecoach stops, and the only one opened to the public. 

    Visiting this Civil War era site conveys how Kansas City and Olathe have been so closely intertwined. Then, as now, the growth of one community affects the other. Kansas City and Westport, Missouri, (then a separate town) grew rapidly during the 1850s and 1860s. Lucrative trade routes developed between emerging cities and developing towns like Olathe. New settlers and traders traveling the dusty overland trails (roads) stopped for much needed food, rest and fresh supplies. 

    James and Lucinda Mahaffie moved to Olathe from Indiana in 1857 – the year Olathe was established. They lived in a wood frame home in the small town until 1858, when they purchased the 360-acre farm. The Mahaffies moved part of their home to the farm site and lived in it until the stone farmhouse now located on the site was completed in 1865. Other period buildings that remain include the 1860 timber-frame barn and the stone ice house (1865). 

    The Mahaffie’s relocation to Kansas Territory in the 1850s was not an unusual move; however, their proximity to Olathe was particularly fortunate. The Barlow and Sanderson Stagecoach Line hired the Mahaffie family to provide a stop for their loaded wagons traveling between Fort Scott and Fort Leavenworth, and between Independence, Missouri to Santa Fe, Mexico. From 1865-1869, travelers stopped for a meal in the Mahaffie’s basement, which housed a dining hall and kitchen. Estimates have the Mahaffie women and their employees serving between 50-100 meals a day. While passengers ate, the tired horses were exchanged for rested animals to continue the journey. 

    The Mahaffie’s stagecoach business continued until 1869, when the railroad reached Olathe. James Mahaffie was primarily a farmer, so this shift did not severely impact the family’s income. Records show that Mahaffie purchased an additional 200 acres of land around the growing town. He also helped establish and served as a board member of an early railroad company. Olathe purchased the Mahaffie property in 1979 to preserve it as an historic site. Today, the stagecoach site and extended farm property serve as a visual reminder of the region’s frontier beginnings and early transportation routes that connected the area’s emerging communities.

Your Visit

Mahaffie Stagecoach is open Wednesday – Saturday (10 a.m. – 4 p.m.) and Sunday (12-4 p.m.) during the summer. Thursdays are Family Fun Nights with special activities, such as stagecoach rides, leather stamping and period games. Each week has a different theme, so call ahead to find one your family would enjoy.

Visitors should plan to spend two hours touring the site, which includes a Heritage Center with an introductory exhibit, I Knew it was a Fine Country. An activity guide directs visitors through the exhibit and as they tour the original home, ice house, and barn. Families with children ages three and up have the best experiences. Period-costumed interpreters greet visitors throughout their tour. These guides may be cooking, pumping water, working in a blacksmith shop, or tending the garden or crops. Everyone can pitch in and help with these chores!

The Overland Route:

Your journey to the Mahaffie Stagecoach Stop will follow much of the original overland trails. The site is located just west of U. S. Interstate Highway 35 (I-35) in Olathe, Kansas. Watch for signs along the way that identify where I-35 follows the Santa Fe and Oregon-California Trails.

For more information visit the Mahaffie website at www.OlatheKs.org/Mahaffie or call 913-971-5111.

Mahaffie Stagecoach Stop and Farm

1200 Kansas City Road

Olathe, Kansas

Kathy Stump and her family enjoy exploring the region’s history from their home in Parkville, Missouri, a historic riverfront town established ca. 1838.