Everything about The Pony Express totally explained
The
Pony Express was a fast
mail service crossing the
North American continent from
St. Joseph, Missouri, to
Sacramento, California from April 1860 to October 1861. Messages were
carried on horseback relay across the prairies, plains, deserts, and mountains of the
Western United States. It briefly reduced the time for mail to travel between the
Atlantic and
Pacific coasts to around ten days.
By traveling an easier shorter route and using mounted riders rather than stagecoaches, the founders of the Pony Express hoped to establish their service as a faster and more reliable conduit for the mail and win away the exclusive government mail contract.
The Pony Express demonstrated that a unified transcontinental system could be built and operated continuously the year around — something not seen since the times of the
Romans. Since its replacement by the
First Transcontinental Telegraph, the Pony Express has entered the romance of the
American West. Its reliance on the ability and endurance of the individual riders and horses over technological innovation is part of "American rugged individualism".
Background
Founded by
William Hepburn Russell,
William B. Waddell, and
Alexander Majors, the Pony Express officially opened on
April 3,
1860. The first trip, westbound, was made in 10 days, 7 hours, and 45 minutes. The eastbound trip was made in 11 days and 12 hours. Every 24 hours they covered approximately 250 miles. The Pony Express, established a year before the beginning of the
American Civil War, reflected the need to provide fast and reliable communication with the West.
In 1845, it took
President James K. Polk six months to deliver a message to the Far West. Messages in those days had to travel around the
tip of
South America or across the
isthmus of
Panama.
By 1860, the fastest route was the
Butterfield Stage line from
St. Louis, Missouri, through
El Paso, Texas, which took 25 days. It was almost 600 miles (950 km) shorter to deliver the mail over a
central or
northern route. There were concerns, however, whether these alternatives were viable during the winter snows.
In 1854,
Benjamin Franklin Ficklin, an employee of the firm of
Russell, Majors and Waddell, is said to have first proposed a faster northern route to California. Senator
William M. Gwin.
Russell, Majors and Waddell, headquartered in
Lexington, Missouri (the hometown of Russell and Waddell), was one of the biggest outfitters for travelers on the
Santa Fe and
Oregon trails. The firm operated a vast complex in the
West Bottoms of
Kansas City, Missouri, and also outfitted the army from its western base at
Fort Leavenworth, Kansas.
In October 1857, Russell, Majors and Waddell faced financial ruin when
Lot Smith and his
Nauvoo Legion destroyed 54 of their wagons during the
Utah War. The Army didn't reimburse the firm, and the company began looking for other avenues for funds. In 1859, they bought from
Ben Holladay the contract to deliver mail between Leavenworth and
Salt Lake City, Utah.
On
January 27,
1860,
William Hepburn Russell wired the firm from Leavenworth that Gwin was supporting a contract for California service on the central route provided that it be delivered in 10 days and be ready to debut by April. They renamed their Leavenworth & Pikes Peak Express to the
Central Overland California and Pikes Peak Express Company to attempt the feat.
The
Hannibal & St. Joseph Railroad had just opened in 1859 and was the first railroad to cross
Missouri. It was 30 miles (48 km) up the
Missouri River from Leavenworth in St. Joseph. It was determined that this would be the starting point for a rapid central mail route to California.
Alexander Majors and Ficklin assembled 190 relay stations over 1,966 miles (3,106 km) from St. Joseph to Sacramento, along with 50 riders and 500
horses. They completed the task in time for the
April 3,
1860, opening. Ficklin later clashed with Russell and quit the business in July 1860. He became one of the incorporators of the
Pacific Telegraph Company.
Operation
Pony Express stations were placed at intervals of about 10 miles (16 km) along the route
(External Link
), roughly the maximum distance a horse can travel at full gallop. The rider changed to a fresh horse at each station, taking only the mail pouch (called a
mochila, Spanish (from
Basque) for "pouch") with him. The
Mochila was thrown over the saddle and held in place by the weight of the rider sitting on it. Each corner had a
cantina, or pocket. Bundles of mail were placed in these
cantinas, which were padlocked for safety. The
mochila could hold 20 pounds (10 kg) of mail along with the 20 pounds of material carried on the horse, allowing for a total of 165 pounds (75 kg) on the horse's back. Riders, who couldn't weigh over 125 pounds, were changed about every 75–100 miles (120-160 km). Included in that 20 pounds were: a water sac, a Bible, a knife, a horn for alerting the relay station master to prepare the next horse, a revolver, and a choice of a rifle or another revolver. Eventually, they took away everything except one revolver and a water sac to cut down on the weight. The riders received $100 per month as pay.
Majors had acquired over 400 horses for the project, and these averaged about 14½ hands (1.47 m) high and weighed under 900 pounds (410 kg)
(External Link), thus the name
pony was appropriate, even if not strictly correct for all the horses.
Route
The route roughly followed the
Oregon Trail,
Mormon Trail and
California Trail.
After crossing the Missouri River at St. Joseph to Kansas, it followed what is modern day
US 36—the
Pony Express Highway—to
Marysville, Kansas, where it turned northwest following
Little Blue River to
Fort Kearney in
Nebraska. Through Nebraska it followed the
Great Platte River Road, cutting through
Gothenburg, Nebraska and passing
Courthouse Rock,
Chimney Rock, and
Scotts Bluff, clipping the edge of
Colorado at
Julesburg, Colorado, before arriving
Fort Laramie in
Wyoming. From there it followed the
Sweetwater River, passing
Independence Rock,
Devil's Gate, and
Split Rock, to
Fort Caspar, through
South Pass to
Fort Bridger and then down to Salt Lake City. It crossed the
Great Basin, the
Utah-Nevada Desert, and the
Sierra Nevada near
Lake Tahoe before arriving in
Sacramento. Mail was then sent via steamer down the
Sacramento River to San Francisco. On a few instances when the steamer was missed, riders took the mail via horseback to
Oakland, California.
The first ride
The rides were scheduled to leave San Francisco and St. Joseph simultaneously on
April 3,
1860 although the westbound route has gotten more publicity. No photographs of riders beginning in either direction are known and none are believed to exist.
Westbound
The messenger delivering the
mochila from
New York and
Washington missed a connection in
Detroit and arrived in
Hannibal, Missouri, two hours late. The railroad cleared the track and dispatched a special locomotive called the "Missouri" with a one-car train to make the 206-mile (332 km) trek across the state in a record 4 hours, 51 minutes — an average of 40 miles per hour (64 km/h). It arrived at Olive and 8th Street — a few blocks from the company's new headquarters in a hotel at
Patee House at 12th Street and Pennsylvania and the company's nearby stables on Pennsylvania. The first pouch contained 49 letters, five private telegrams, and some papers for San Francisco and intermediate points.
St. Joseph
Mayor M. Jeff Thompson, William Russell and Alexander Majors gave speeches before the
mochila was handed off. There is debate over who actually was the first rider. The ride began at about 7:15 p.m.
The first horse-ridden leg of the Express was only about a half mile (800 m) from the Express stables/railroad area to the Missouri River ferry at the foot of Jules Street.
Johnny Fry is credited as the first westbound rider who carried the pouch across the Missouri River ferry to
Elwood, Kansas. Reports indicated that horse and rider crossed the river; however, subsequently, the courier crossed the river without a horse, getting the mount at a stable on the other side.
However, the identity of the first rider has long been in dispute.
The Weekly West (
April 4,
1860) reported
Johnson William Richardson was the first rider (see Footnote 358
(External Link)).
Nevertheless, the first westbound mochila reached its destination, San Francisco, on
April 14, at 1:00 a.m.
Eastbound
James Randall is credited as the first rider from the San Francisco Alta telegraph office since he was on the steamship
Antelope to go to Sacramento. At 2:45 a.m., William (Sam) Hamilton was the first rider to begin the journey from Sacramento.
Closing
Jeremy Dehut in March 1861, who had taken over the Butterfield Stage. Holladay took over the Russell, Majors and Waddell stations for his stagecoaches. From March 1861, the Pony Express only ran mail between Salt Lake City and Sacramento. The Pony Express announced its closure on
October 26,
1861, two days after the
Transcontinental Telegraph reached Salt Lake City.
The Pony Express had grossed $90,000 and lost $200,000. In 1866, after the American Civil War was over, Holladay sold the Pony Express assets along with the remnants of the Butterfield Stage to
Wells Fargo for $1.5 million.
Wells Fargo used the Pony Express logo for its guard and
armored car service. The logo continued to be used when other companies took over the security business into the 1990s. Effective 2001, the Pony Express logo was no longer used for security businesses since the business has been sold.
In June 2006, the
United States Postal Service announced it had
trademarked "Pony Express" along with
Air Mail.
"Pony Express" is a
trademarked name used by Freight Link international courier services company in Russia; their logo is also similar to the one trademarked by United States Postal Service with "Since 1860" written under the image.
Legacy
Pony Express statues are in Sacramento;
Stateline, Nevada;
Reno, Nevada; Salt Lake City;
Casper, Wyoming; Julesburg, Colorado;
Marysville, Kansas;
North Kansas City, Missouri; and St. Joseph. The original and most famous is the one dedicated on
April 20,
1940, in St. Joseph. It was sculpted by
Hermon Atkins MacNeil. It is at City Hall Park. The city has rejected proposals to move it to the park opposite the stables.
McGraw Hill and
AMERIKIDS USA produced the educational game PONY EXPRESS RIDER in 1996 to teach the value of the Pony Express in helping the Union win the Civil War. The Pony Express helped the Union uncover the plans of the
Knights of the Golden Circle.
Publication
Further Information
Get more info on 'Pony Express'.
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