PONY EXPRESS
On April 3, 1860, the first Pony Express mail riders, traveling by horse and rider relay teams, simultaneously left St. Joseph, Missouri, and
Sacramento, California. Ten days later, on April 13, the westbound rider and mail packet completed the approximately 1,800-mile journey and arrived in Sacramento, beating the eastbound packet’s arrival in St. Joseph by two days and setting a new standard for mail delivery.
Before the Pony Express a letter was delivered by ship or Butterfield Express, which could take from one to several months. So the ten day delivery was quite an improvement.
Unfortunately, as the Pony Express riders were riding east and west, they would come across men putting poles in the ground and stringing wire for the first transcontinental telegraph, which was completed in October 1861. With the transcontinental telegraph, there was no need for the Pony Express, and it ceased operations.
Filed under: Old West History
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You know that there is a Pony Express re-ride every year, right? Each year volunteers ride from St. Louis to Sacremento, or reverse the ride. They ride 24 hours a day, rain or shine, and complete the ride in 10 days, just like “in the old days.”
http://www.xphomestation.com/index.html
My bad! I meant St. Joseph, MO.
They have one out here in Arizona also. When does the one from St. Joseph, MO take place?
The riders will leave Sacramento, CA on June 13, 2012, ride 24 hours a day, and arrive in St. Joseph, MO. on June 23rd. They actually carry US mail on this trip.
I’ve actually posted letters via them in the past. Might do it again this year. Is there a may on the Internet that shows their route?
They have a historical map at http://www.ponyexpress.org/history.
I will keep you posted as the time of the re-ride gets closer as to the schedule.
Thanks. Looking forward to it.