Delivery Schedule
"Normal delivery time was set at ten days for letters and eight for telegrams. However, during the winter months the time was extended to twelve to sixteen days. The fastest…
Tissue Paper for Mail
"For the Pony special thin paper was used, especially for the newspapers in order to keep the weight down. [Alexander] Majors noted the cantinas 'were filled with important business letters…
Type of Mail Carried
"It is assumed by many that the mail carried by the Pony Express was comprised of letters from ordinary people to their friends and loved ones. That is not accurate.…
Orphans Preferred
"Perhaps one of the most recognized 'documents' of the Pony Express is the advertisement for riders with 'orphans preferred.' It is the basis for comments by writers how orphans were…
Senator Gwin’s Motivation
"It was sometime in December 1859 or early January 1860 that William H. Russell, one of the partners in the firm Russell, Majors and [sic] Waddell, and California Senator William M.…
Secondary Consequences
"There was no government bailout for [Russell, Majors & Waddell]. Some could argue that the government or some officials did the opposite by making sure there were no government contracts…
A Successful Failure
"Today, the Pony Express is often referred to as 'a successful failure.' The founders realized that the Pony Express, commonly referred to as 'the Pony,' would not be financially successful,…
The Pledge
"[N]o man wold be entrusted to carry the mail until he had signed this pledge: I do hereby swear, before the Great and Living God,that during my engagement, and while…
The Mochila
"To reduce weight, protect the mail, and speed up relays, Mr. Russell had special Pony Express saddles and mochilas made. The saddle was only a light wooden frame, with horn,…
The Pony’s Load
"[Russell, Majors & Waddell] immediately set to work, making careful plans for speeding and safeguarding the Pony Mail. They believed that both depended on the swiftness and endurance of relay…
The End of the Pony Express
The Pony Express, its route drastically shortened and its purpose now virtually eliminated by the telegraph, was quietly discontinued, with none of the fanfare that had launched it, following the…
Pony Express Temporarily Suspended
"On May 7, a band of Paiute Indians attacked a Pony Express station in the Carson Valley west of Salt Lake City, killing seven men and burning down the station…
Central Overland’s Mail Monopoly
"The effect of the Pony Express on Washington was immediate and profound. Five weeks after the Pony was launched, a special Congressional committee recommended building a railroad along the Platte…
Pony Express Operating Deficit
"No expenses had been spared to assure the Pony's success: it had cost about $100,000 to set up. Yet unlike the Central Overland stage line, the Pony Express had no…
Emergency Test of the Pony Express
In mid-march, 1860, Jules Beni shot Jack Slade, superintendent of the division, in Julesburg and left him for dead. "Now, less than three weeks before the scheduled opening of the…