Many hear our newspaper’s title, The Pony Express, and have no idea where the name came from. We didn’t just toss a bunch of ideas in a bag and pick one at random. As a matter of fact, the name “Pony Express” goes back to a time where information was shared by word of mouth or delivered by the only form of transportation- horses.
On April 3, 1860, a new service opened that consisted of men riding horses over a 2,000-mile trail to deliver mail and packages. It was founded by William H. Russell, William B. Waddell, and Alexander Majors to create faster communication to the West due to the threat of Civil War. Riders traveled from St. Joseph, Missouri to Sacramento, California and could cover 250 miles in one day. They faced tough obstacles such as inclement weather and rugged terrain, but managed to persevere and unite a severely separated country.
Each rider traveled between 10-15 miles before stopping at a relay station to take a short break and change horses; the riders were switched every 75-100 miles. The cost of delivery was $5 per half-ounce of mail, and each load carried approximately 20 pounds of mail. The company’s founders hoped to make profit by having a million dollar contract with the U.S. government.
Unfortunately, the risk did not pay off.
Ten weeks after the Pony Express began, Congress authorized a bill that allowed for the construction of a transcontinental telegraph to connect the Missouri River to the Pacific Coast. The Pony Express continued to run as usual, but on October 26th, 1861 it was officially terminated when San Francisco established direct contact with New York City. The last packages were not delivered until November 1861.
In the end, the owners of the company only made about half of the million dollar contract and went bankrupt. However, the Pony Express was the fastest mail delivery system of that time, and its memory will never be forgotten. Many museums and historical landmarks have been created and opened to the public to remember the lasting impact of the Pony Express and its courageous riders.
Sources:
- History.com Staff. “Pony Express Debuts.” 2009. History. Web. 11 Dec. 2015.
- Bureau of Land Management. The Pony Express in Nevada. Carson City: Nevada State Museum, 1996. Web. 11 Dec 2015.
