NPS Santa Fe National Historic Trail
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  • 316. Post Office Oak

    A large, stone building with a museum sign in the grass and a wooden stump protected by a roofed structure.
    Post Office Oak Museum
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    Map of Council Grove, Post Office Oak

    From 1825-1847, Santa Fe Trail travelers left messages in a cache at the foot of this tree, said to be used as a “post office.” Trail travelers left notes to inform others of the trail conditions, giving it it’s name “Post Office Oak” The tree died in 1990 and the stump has been preserved on this site.

    In 1855, Council Grove’s first postmaster was appointed. Since there was not official post office, the postmaster simply distributed mail from a sack or on the street or floor of a store for patrons to sift through and retrieve their mail.

    The adjacent stone house was built in 1864. It is now a museum operated by the Morris County Historical Society, but most of its displays focus on local history after the Santa Fe Trail.

    Read the exhibit

    A large tree stump with roofed structure to protect it in front of a stone building.
    Post Office Oak