Pony Express

[stc]

Can anyone suggest good western novels that feature the Pony Express? Seems like the business, technical, and human elements of the short-lived PE offer a rich source of drama. Must have been a massive enterprise to plan, implement, and operate. And after only a year-and-a-half: RIP. Must be alot of stories there.

Thanks for info!

[alleycat]

There's the old Pony Express movie with Charlton Heston. I'm not sure whether it was based on a book or not.

[Vanatru]

Jeanne might know something. I think she was a little girl back in those days. Maybe she's got some personal memories. Or Cav, I think he was a PE rider. ;)

[johnnysannie]

I can't think of any novels - although I would imagine that there are some - that deal with the Pony Express.

For factual information, however, the Pony Express stables are still in St. Joseph, Missouri and have been preserved as a museum. St. Joe is my hometown and I grew up on tales of the Pony Express. Although short lived, it was a unique venture. My dad - who is now in his early 70's - knew a Pony Express rider who was an old man when my dad was a boy.

This link takes you to the official site with loads of information:

http://www.ponyexpress.org/index.htm

So does this one:
http://www.nps.gov/poex/planyourvisit/site1.htm

If you can make one, a visit would be very informative. In the park across the street, the railroad engine on display was driven down many a mile of track by my great-uncle who had the honor of driving it there on its' final journey. Before they put up the fence, he took me up into the engine and taught me the basics of how to drive a train!

[veinglory]

I think the myth is more interesting than the truth of it ;) It was a massively poor business decision!

[johnnysannie]

Myth? The Pony Express was far from a myth and it operated as documented. The operation was designed to carry mail overland at a faster speed than it could otherwise be sent - to go by ship, mail had to go 'round the Horn and by wagon it could be almost as long. Mail delivery was spotty at best.

What ended the Pony Express was the completion of the transcontinental railroad (the Iron Horse) that could deliver mail even faster than young men riding horses nearly to death.

The Pony Express is just one of those brief, romantic historical moments that was brief but memorable.

[Vanatru]

The Pony Express is just one of those brief, romantic historical moments that was brief but memorable.

Sounds like my love life in high school. Wait, sorry, didn't catch that "memorable" part. Nevermind.

I was reading some things on the PE a few months that stated they had horrible record keeping and many records were lost. Such as how many people were riders and station masters. This had me thinking it'd be a great avenue for a story line.........to fill in those gaps or at least insert your own ideas and characters.

[PattiTheWicked]

There was a great book out a while back called "Orphans Preferred" by a guy named Corbett. It talks about the myth vs the reality of the Pony Express. Worth checking out.

Or you could always rent the Young Riders DVD :)

[veinglory]

The myth of what is was like is what I meant. It ran at a loss from beginning to end and involved little or no heroics. 'Orphans preferred' is itself a myth, that job ad never ran. There are several illuminating books on the way a heroic myth was built on this short-lived failed business.

[Bmwhtly]

I read the wiki entry on Pony Express a while back and (if it's accurate) it's worth bearing in mind how often the riders were changed.
So the rather romantic image of a horse and rider blazing from coast to coast is a myth. But, of course, there's still potential.

[alleycat]

I read the wiki entry on Pony Express a while back and (if it's accurate) it's worth bearing in mind how often the riders were changed.
So the rather romantic image of a horse and rider blazing from coast to coast is a myth. But, of course, there's still potential.
I don't think that's the image most Americans have of it. On every movie and TV shows I've ever seen it shows either the rider or the horse been changed at each station. But, whatever.

Funny, a few years ago I ordered something from San Francisco. It was sent by UPS. After two weeks or more I still hadn't gotten it so I called the store. We managed to track the package--it was still in transit. We had a good laugh over the fact that the package probably would have taken less time to get to me if it had been sent by Pony Express than UPS.

[Bmwhtly]

Funny, a few years ago I ordered something from San Francisco. It was sent by UPS. After two weeks or more I still hadn't gotten it so I called the store. We managed to track the package--it was still in transit. We had a good laugh over the fact that the package probably would have taken less time to get to me if it had been sent by Pony Express than UPS.
I pity the rider who'd have to carry your knew refridgerator across the country.

[johnnysannie]

I read the wiki entry on Pony Express a while back and (if it's accurate) it's worth bearing in mind how often the riders were changed.
So the rather romantic image of a horse and rider blazing from coast to coast is a myth. But, of course, there's still potential.


I haven't read the Wiki entry (but most folks don't consider that a reputable source) but anyone who has done any research or has any historical knowledge about the Pony Express at all knows very well that the riders and horses changed at each station. That fact certainly doesn't detract from what the Pony Express accomplished in its' brief glory days.

We all may joke about the slowness of snail mail and almost everyone has horror stories about mail or packages that went astray or took much longer than expected but mail delivery in the short lived Pony Express era was almost a miracle, especially on a transcontinental basis so it was an amazing thing at the time.

[Cav Guy]

Can anyone suggest good western novels that feature the Pony Express? Seems like the business, technical, and human elements of the short-lived PE offer a rich source of drama. Must have been a massive enterprise to plan, implement, and operate. And after only a year-and-a-half: RIP. Must be alot of stories there.

Thanks for info!
I can't off the top of my head think of any novels that featured the PE, but I'd say that gives you all the more room to write one. Out of the roughly 180 riders who worked for them during those 18 months you should be able to find a couple who were interesting...:)

I think (if memory serves) Bill Cody rode for them for a time. He freighted for Russell, Majors, and Waddell (the parent company of the PE), so it would be a logical move for him. The Writer's Guide to Everyday Life in the Wild West gives a good, short overview of their operations and lists some sources for further reading as well.

And even with changes at every station, each rider had to cover 75 miles of really nasty country (look where the PE ran). There was a reason they carried two Colt Navy pistols.

ETA: Actually, I'd say the Civil War had more to do with ending the PE than the railroad did. By November 1861 the Union wasn't sure how much of the PE route they'd actually control, including Missouri. Between the War and reliable telegraph service (or at least service that reached further West) the PE just wasn't that easy to maintain.

[veinglory]

The horses would have to change a lot, over long distances they don't move noticeable faster than people on foot ;)

[CoriSCapnSkip]

Here http://isbn.nu/cgi-bin/design-books?singleform=yes&searchtype=title&searchvalue=Pony+Express&x=32&y=7 is a good sampling.