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Pony Express: Home

The Pony Express trail began in St. Joseph, Missouri, and ended in Sacramento, California (1800 miles). The Pony Express (1860-1861) took 10 days and was set up to provide a fresh horse every 10-15 miles.

Jackson, William Henry, Howard R Driggs, and American Pioneer Trails Association. Pony express route April 3, 1860. [Bayside, New York: American Pioneer Trails Association, 1960] Map. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, www.loc.gov/item/2004629238/.

Image: Map, Pony Express Route, mail Missouri to California, Stations

Closely following the Oregon-California Trail, the path diverted south of the Great Salt Lake and headed west across the Sierra Nevada Mountains to save over 100 miles.

SLCL Branches and Hours

William Cody (Buffalo Bill) claimed he was a Pony Express rider at just 14 years old, statements like these were not something that was unheard of, the youngest Pony Express rider ever recorded was said to be just 11 years of age.

Image: Photograph, Young Boy in a Suit

NPM: 10c Washington on Pony Express cover, 1860. Loan from William H. Gross.

Image: Envelope, Central Overland California & Pikes Peak Express Company

A Pony Express rider carried this cover, considered one of the most historically significant in U.S. postal history. Notice the notation on the front: “recovered from a mail stolen by the Indians in 1860.”

This cover bears an oval marking that reads “The Central Overland California & Pikes Peak Express Company.” That enterprise administered the Pony Express. American Indians overtook the Pony Express rider, interrupting delivery. The pony escaped with the letter pouch, which was later recovered on the plains. The letters were forwarded to their destination. This cover is one of only two known examples. It reached New York in 1862. By then, the Pony Express no longer existed.

Stations

States

 # of Stations Miles of Trail

Missouri

 3 2

“Kansas”

 13 151

“Nebraska”

 38 565

“Colorado”

 2 27

“Wyoming”

 43 489

“Utah”

 27 263

“Nevada”

 47 417

California

 24 87

TOTALS

 197 1966 Miles

California

The route between Sacramento and San Francisco:

  1. Water Route:  Sacramento to San Francisco via the American River on a steamboat or, if they missed the boat, overland from Sacramento:
    1. Benicia / Benica
    2. Martinez
    3. Oakland
    4. San Francisco – Western Headquarters