In 1859, the Leavenworth & Pike's Peak Express Company (L. & P.P. Express Co.) established a stagecoach station at Seventeen Mile Station to serve as the first stop for passengers after Fort Kearney. When the Central Overland California & Pike's Peak Express Company assumed control of these stations and started the Pony Express, it is likely that they made the Seventeen Mile Station a relay station on the route. In 1860, when the noted English traveller Richard F. Burton crossed the Great Plains and passed through this station, his stagecoach exchanged animals at Seventeen Mile Station. It should also be noted that Merrill Mattes also proposed McClain's and Russell's Ranch as the site mentioned by traveler Richard Burton in his 1860 account. Nevertheless, many sources generally name this site as Platte or Platt's, located about five miles southeast of Odessa, probably because the station is listed as "Platt's" in the 1861 mail contract, and because the Holladay Stage Line stopped at Platte later on.
In 1960, Merrill Mattes and Paul Henderson suggested that Seventeen Mile Relay Station was possibly the same station site as Platt's. Whereas, Gregory M. Franzwa listed Seventeen Mile as a separate station west of Platte, but notes that historical sources also called it Platte Station. (NPS)

Note: Point plotted at Sandy Channel Recreation Area, about 5 miles SE of Odessa.