Pony Express National Parks
 God Speed the Pony Express Riders
"Men Wanted!…Men familiar with the management of horses, as hostlers or riders on the Overland Express
Route via Salt Lake City…Wages $50 per month." Sacramento Union, March 19, 1860
So announced newspaper ads. Hires ranged from teenagers to about age 40. Weight restrictions were strict. Riders had to weigh less than 120
pounds and carry 20 pounds of mail and 25 pounds of equipment.
Some riders were given an inscribed leather Bible. Employees took this oath: "While I am in the employ of A. Majors, I agree not to use
profane language, not to get drunk, not to gamble, not to treat animals cruelly, and not to do anything else that is incompatible with the
conduct of a gentleman. And I agree, if I violate any of the above conditions, to accept my discharge without any pay for my services." The job
was exacting and not for the faint of heart.
The company employed between 80 and 100 riders and several hundred station workers. Riders earned wages plus room and board. They joked that
the company’s initials, C.O.C. & P.P., stood for "Clean Out of Cash & Poor Pay." The Pony employed some characters – not all living up to
the pledge of obedience and abstinence befitting a gentleman. Division Superintendent Jack Slade ran wild when drink but "kept the road cleared
of robbers and horse thieves." Some say Assistant Station Tender James Butler "Wild Bill" Hickock shot agent David McCanles and two others at
Rock Creek Station in Nebraska. "Buffalo Bill" Cody never rode for the Pony Express, but he used his Wild West Show to promote the Pony’s legend
and romance.
 Horses were selected for swiftness and endurance. Russell advertised for "200 grey mares, from four to seven years old, not to
exceed fifteen hands high, well broke to the saddle and warranted sound." The company bought 400 to 500 horses, many thoroughbreds for
eastern runs and California mustangs for western stretches. Horses averaged 10 miles per hour, at times galloping up to 25 miles per hour.
During his route of 75 to 100 miles a rider changed horses eight to 10 times.
Mail traveled in four, locked leather boxes sewn into the corners of a leather mochila (knapsack) that fit over the saddle. The design
allowed for fast removal and placement on a fresh horse. The exchange of horses and mail was more casual than legend has it. Riders often stopped
to eat or drink and stretch their legs, but Mark Twain wrote that the "transfer of rider and mail-bag was made in the twinkling of any eye."
Twain also reported that from his stagecoach he "heard only a whiz and a hail, and the swift phantom of the desert was gone before we could get
our heads out of the windows."
Great Race Against Time
The First Rides
On April 3, 1860, after weeks of frenzied preparation, the day for the first rides arrived. The St. Joseph Daily Gazette declared it
would "forward, by the first Pony Express, the first and only newspaper which goes out, and which will be the first paper ever transmitted to
California in eight days." This Pony Express Edition also announced, "The first pony will start this afternoon at 5 p.m. precisely." The
westbound rider actually left at 7:15 p.m. reportedly carrying five telegrams, 49 letters, and newspapers printed on lightweight paper "as airy
and thin as gold leaf." The eastbound mail left San Francisco at 4 p.m., traveling by the paddle steamer Antelope to Sacramento. From
Sacramento, rider Sam Hamilton blazed east, changing horses six times, and passed the mochila to Warren Upson who took the mail over the
Sierra Nevada in a blizzard. East and westbound riders passed each other on April 8, west of today’s Farson, Wyoming. Bands, banners, bells, and
occasionally "a wild cavalcade of men" greeted riders along the way. After covering nearly 2,000 miles, the eastbound mail reached St. Joseph on
April 13. The reception was tumultuous, with bands and cheering people lining the streets. In Sacramento a mounted escort and cannon fire greeted
the Pony rider. The westbound mail arrived in San Francisco about 1 a.m. on April 14. Thousands of people turned out to watch the Antelope
arrive with the first mail. The crowd lit bonfires and held a boisterous celebration.
The Pony Express charged five dollars per half-ounce for mail (about $85 in today’s money), later reducing the fee to one dollar. At first the
Pony ran once a week in each direction. Starting in July 1860 it ran a second weekly trip, delivering mail in 10 days or fewer between St. Joseph
and San Francisco.
Only once did the mail not go through. The service suspended operations from May to late June 1860 during an Indian uprising. Over the winter
Paiutes in Nevada endured harsh weather and faced starvation. They blamed the thousands of miners who destroyed Indian food and water sources as
they dug for gold and silver. Tensions grew, and the Pony became a target. Paiutes razed relay stations, killed employees, and drove off horses.
The disrupted service brought heavy financial losses to the already struggling company.
The greatest challenge to the Pony proved to be not Indians but winter weather. Freight roads to the Nevada mines kept Sierra Nevada passes
open during much of the winter, but snows that buried the high country between Salt Lake and Fort Laramie often proved too much for a single
rider. Still, delivery continued even during January with only a four- to six-day delay.
To Learn About the History and Formation of the Pony Express Click Here
To Learn About the History of Mail Delivery Leading to the Pony Express Click Here
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