Show Me Missouri: Old St. Joseph (6.10.24)

On June 10, 2024, we entered Missouri, a state that is as proud of its Western history as Wyoming, Montana, or other states much farther west.  For many years, Missouri was the launching point for explorations and settlement of the west.  As early as 1805, Lewis and Clark began their exploration of the West, which led them to Oregon, from St. Louis, on the eastern edge of Missouri, along the Mississippi River.  The prime tourist site in St. Louis is a huge arch, advertised as the "Gateway to the West." St. Joseph, which we explored, is on the Missouri River, on the west side of the state, next to Kansas and Nebraska.  St. Joseph was the starting point for settlers following the Santa Fe trail to New Mexico.  It was also the launch point for the Pony Express.
 

The Pony Express was a daring venture to carry mail from East (St. Joseph) to West (Sacramento, CA) in just ten days, rather than the months it took previously.  The first Pony Express riders left St Joseph in 1860, but the Pony Express lasted for only eighteen months.  In 1861, the intercontinental telegraph was implemented, which could transmit information from East to West instantly.  In 1868, the intercontinental railroad was completed at Promontory Pont, Utah.  The railroad could carry more mail more cheaply than the Pony Express.  The drama of the Pony Express and its riders has lived on, however, for 150 years in the American imagination. As one commentator wrote, "When replaced by the telegraph, the Pony Express quickly became romanticized and became part of the lore of the Old West. Its reliance on the ability and endurance of hardy riders and fast horses was seen as evidence of rugged American individualism of the frontier times."

This map shows the route the Pony Express riders took.

The Pony Express route went directly through northern Utah.

This picture shows a working Pony Express station.  The camera was used increasingly during and after the Civil War.

When we take desert trips through Utah's West Desert, we stop at rebuilt Pony Express stations.

There used to be a Pony Express station at Porter Rockwell's wife's dog graveyard, a regular stop on our desert trips.

In the Pony Express Stables Museum, in St. Joseph, we saw a life-size recreation of the first Pony Express rider being loaded up with mail in his saddle bags, and then hurried off to the next station.  Pony Express riders typically rode 75 to 100 miles per shift, stopping at Pony Express stations 10 to 15 miles apart for food and a fresh horse.

The museum included statutes which celebrate Pony Express riders.