Tucked away in southeast Oklahoma and built in the 1850s, the Edwards Store is known as the last original surviving structure on the 192-mile Butterfield Overland stage line, which carried passengers and the U.S. Mail between St. Louis and San Francisco. The log cabin was built by Englishman Thomas Edwards who traveled to the area in the 1840s. He married Nancy Hardaway, a Choctaw native, and together they opened a store on the Fort Smith to Boggy Depot road. The Edwards Store served as a meal stop for travelers, became the original post office for Red Oak in 1868, and was a private residence for Edwards’ family descendants until 1981. 

Added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1972, ownership of the cabin has been maintained by the Edwards-Hardaway family. Plans are underway to restore the cabin to its pre-Civil War condition. The Edwards Store is accessible for outside viewing and photo opportunities when active construction is not taking place.