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The Pony Express—20 months of service

By Staff | Dec 24, 2008

In March 1860, William H. Russell, an American transportation pioneer, advertised for hostliers and riders to work on an overland express route. 

He repeatedly had failed to get backing from the Senate Post Office and Post Roads Committee for an express route to carry mail between St. Joseph, Missouri–the westernmost point reached by the railroad and telegraph–and California.  The Post Office Department carried mail from the East Coast to California by steamship, but the service seldom hit its three-to-four-week delivery target.  Some overland mail reached California via the military. Cross-country mail often took months.

Many people believed year-round overland transportation was impossible because of extreme weather conditions.  Russell, however, believed a route was feasible and was prepared to organize his own Express service to prove it.

Russell and two partners formed the Central Overland California and Pike’s Peak Express Company.  They built new relay stations and readied existing ones for use.  The country was combed for good horses–animals hardy enough to challenge deserts and mountains and to withstand thirst in summer and ice in winter.

Riders were recruited hastily but not without screening.  Before being hired, riders had to swear on a Bible to conduct themselves honestly and not to cuss, fight, or abuse their animals.

Starting on April 3, 1860, the Pony Express ran through parts of Missouri, Kansas, Nebraska, Colorado, Wyoming, Utah, Nevada, and California.  On an average day, a rider covered 75 to 100 miles.  He changed horses at relay stations (set about 10 or 15 miles apart), transferring himself and his mochila (a saddle cover with four pockets or cantinas for mail) to the new mount in a single bound.

The first mail by Pony Express via the central route from St. Joseph to Sacramento took 10 days, cutting the overland stage time by more than half.  The fastest delivery was in March 1861, when President Abraham Lincoln’s inaugural address was carried in 7 days and 17 hours.

From April 1860 through June 1861 the Pony Express operated as a private enterprise.  From July 1, 1861, it operated under contract as a mail route until October 1861, after the transcontinental telegraph line was completed, and the Pony Express became a legend.

An independent federal agency, the U.S. Postal Service is the only delivery service that visits every address in the nation – 146 million homes and businesses. It has 37,000 retail locations and relies on the sale of postage, products and services to pay for operating expenses, not tax dollars. The Postal Service has annual revenues of $75 billion and delivers nearly half the world’s mail.