Abbot-Downing "Tally-Ho" stagecoach in the park's museum collection.
NPS/YELL 90054
The Yellowstone Park Transportation Company's roots date back to it's
association with the Northern Pacific Railroad. In 1883 a stage line was
created which ran from the Northern Pacific terminal in Cinnabar, Montana
(later relocated at Gardiner, Montana)
to and through YellowstonePark.
By 1886, the company had a fleet of sightseeing vehicles, the most popular
being the Yellowstone Coaches, which were painted bright yellow and
manufactured by the Abbot-Downing Company of Concord,
New Hampshire. The larger six-horse
"Tally-Ho" stagecoaches transported visitors from the train depot to
the hotel at Mammoth Hot Springs. Yellowstone Observation Wagons, which had a
four-horse team, were then used to take visitors on the "Grand Loop"
tour through the park.
Six-horse "Tally-Ho" stagecoach enroute from the Northern Pacific Railroad depot in Gardiner, Montana to Mammoth Hot Springs, taken about 1910. The seats on the roof were reportedly the most sought after by visitors; unfortunately, none of the examples in the park's museum collection r
NPS/YELL 133564
6-Horse
"Tally Ho" Yellowstone Observation Coach, Yellowstone Park
Transportation Company "1004". Museum Catalog Number YELL 90054. This
stagecoach features four interior forward-facing seats and one exterior rear
seat. This vehicle would have also featured seats on the roof, but none survive
on this or any other Tally-Ho coach in the collection. The passenger
compartment is secured to the undercarriage by original style leather thorough
braces. "YELLOWSTONEPARK"
is in yellow letters along the sides of the canopy, "TRANSPORTATION
CO." is in red along the body panels, and "1004" is painted in
black on both sides of the driver's box. The original leather luggage boot is
secured to the aft exterior of the body.
Image from a circa 1950s postcard showing a "Tally-Ho" (possibly the same 1004 numbered coach in the collection) taken near the Roosevelt Lodge. Although missing the roof seats, the coach at this point appears to retain most of its other original features.
NPS/YELL 142430
This vehicle is composed of both historic and contemporary materials, the modern elements probably date from the late 1950s to the early 1970s (the vehicle's last period of use), and include fiberglass and plywood used in repairs, black vinyl-covered seat cushions, and non-historic paint. This coach was involved in a serious accident at Roosevelt Lodge in 1974, when it tipped over while making a turn. Following the accident, it and other "original" stagecoaches were replaced with modern reproductions for safety reasons.
A recently acquired image of a "Tally-Ho" stagecoach also numbered 1004. This photo clearly shows the roof seats still intact.
NPS/YELL-2012-3
Yellowstone's archives include images of historic vehicles.
