OCT 25: Pony Express’ Final Ride

Sculptor Avard Fairbanks's statue at the National Historic Trails Interpretive Center in Casper, Wyoming, depicts the changeover of Pony Express riders. (Credit: Library of Congress)

As riders of the Pony Express shut down for the night, they will awaken the next morning to news that the service has ceased operations, thanks to completion of the new transcontinental telegraph line in Salt Lake City. It’s the result of an effort by Hiram Sibley and Western Union to connect California to the telegraph networks of the east.

Riders of the Pony Express, started on April 3, 1860, could carry letters across 1,800 miles in 10 days, from St. Joseph, Missouri, to Sacramento, California. In operation for a mere 18 months, the service became synonymous with the Old West in an era pre-dating electronic communication.

James “Wild Bill” Hickock was a stock tender for the Pony Express and William “Buffalo Bill” Cody claimed he was a boy of 14 when he started riding for the service.