Pon y Express Rides Again GGuuiiddeettooHHiissttoorriiccaall SSiitteessAAlloonnggtthhee PPoonnyyEExxpprreessssTTrraaiill Celebrating the 150th Anniversary of the Express SPECIAL EDITION ON THE PONY EXPRESS S E V I H C R A O G R A F S L L E W Introduction and Locator Map...4 The Pony Express Rides Again (and Again)...6 By Christopher Corbett* Re-Riders of the Purple Sage...11 Map of Express Route and Highlights...14 National Pony Express State Coordinators...21 *Chris Corbett, a former news editor and reporter, is author recently of Orphans Preferred: The Twisted Truth and Lasting Legend of the Pony Express (Broadway Books 2003) and The Poker Bride: The First Chinese in the Wild West (Atlantic Monthly 2010). Special section produced by American Heritag e. For additional copies contact John Dawson at American Heritage Publishing, 416 Hungerford Drive, Suite 216, Rockville, MD 20850-4127. For subscriptions to American Heritag e, call 800-777-1222. © American Heritage Publishing, 2010. www.americanheritage.com 2 AMERICAN HERITAGE OLD SACMENT ONATI ONAL HI STORIC DI STRICT is a tribute to the city’s historic Gold Rush past. Recreated and restored buildings and streets feature living history characters, shops, restaurants and historic aractions. New underground tours start this summer. www.oldsacramento.com CALIF ORNIA STATE ILR OAD MUSEUM is North America’s most popular railroad museum. Step aboard restored locomotives and cars, play with toy trains, and see exhibits showcasing how railroads shaped California and the West, uniting a nation. Enjoy the thrill of a steam train ride on weekends from April-September. www.csrmf.org FO LSO M a perfect weekend getaway rich with California Gold Rush history and incredible recreation, is conveniently located midway between Sacramento and Lake Tahoe. e celebration of the 50th Anniversary of the Folsom Pro Rodeo and Annual Cale Drive will feature the Pony Express in fun family activities! Promotional packages available. www.visitfolsom.com HI STORY LIVE S IN SACMENT O and its surrounding communities. Just follow the Pony Express trail to California’s capital…then discover gold in everything from renowned museums to historical aractions to the wineries of the Gold Country. Make plans today to visit Sacramento. Enjoy extra savings and special treatment with the FREE SACMENT O GOLD CARD . Simply ask for one when you check in at a Pony Express statue in Old Sacramento ppaarrttiicicippaattiinngg hhototeel.l. On Monday, June 7, Anniversary riders depart Old Sacramento discovergold.org Celebrating the 150th Anniversary of the Pony Express THE NATIONAL PONY Because much EXPRESS Association of the trail crosses (NPEA), which annually remote country, organizes a re-ride for the amateur radio op - entire 1,966-mile route, erators have volun - has big plans for the teered to help 150th anniversary this riders and their summer. The re-ride usu - captains communi - ally crosses the country as cate. A GPS device, the original riders did, carried by the rid - finishing the route in 10 ers in one of the days of hard riding day cantinas on the and night. This year the mochila, will trans - re-ride will only run dur - mit the mail’s loca - ing daylight hours and tion at all times and take three weeks, from enable anyone to June 6 to 26, so that com - follow the mail in munities along the trail real time on the can join in the celebration. will trace the old route from Sacramento NPEA web site (www.xphomestion.com). Riders, who are all volunteers, will up and over the Sierra Nevada Moun - If you’re unable to enjoy the festivi - carry special commemorative letters in tains and then through Nevada and ties in June, you can make stops along the their mochila, or mail bag, with cachets Utah, some of the driest and most deso - National Park Service’s federally-desig - to show they were carried by the Pony late lands in North America. Before nated Historic Trail any time, visiting any Express with a special U.S. Postal Serv - reaching the terminus at St. Joseph, Mis - one of the hundreds of museums, monu - ice cancellation. The mail will first be souri, the mail will cross Wyoming, Ne - ments, and markers, many of which are carried by rivercraft from San Francisco braska, a corner of Colorado, Kansas, indicated on the map on the proceeding to Sacramento for the start. Then riders and Missouri. pages. Happy Trails . 4 AMERICAN HERITAGE AH House_NEW:AH 3/9/10 4:12 PM Page 1 Experience the American Heritage Tradition of Excellence! 60 Years of Brilliant Writing! Respected authors such as: Stephen E. Ambrose Malcolm Cowley Annette Gordon-Reed John Lukacs Arthur Schlesinger, Jr. Jean H. Baker Joseph J. Ellis Harold Holzer David McCullough Stephen W. Sears Richard Brookhiser Harold Evans John F.Kennedy James M. McPherson Wallace Stegner James MacGregor Burns Thomas Fleming Richard Ketcham William Manchester Barbara Tuchman Ken Burns James Thomas Flexner Margaret Leech SamuelEliotMorison LaurelThatcher Ulrich Bruce Catton John A. Garraty William E. Leuchtenburg Bill Moyers Geoffrey C. Ward Henry Steele Commager Doris Kearns Goodwin R. W. B. Lewis Allan Nevins T. H. Watkins American Heritage is dedicated to bringing you the best writing on the American experience, written bytoday’s leading historians and authors. Subscribe NOW! call 1-800-777-1222 or on the web at www.americanheritage.com Who will be tomorrow’s most respected historians? Subscribe to American Heritage and find out! Previous page: Gregg Hearty carries a mochila full MAPS MARTIN WALZ of mail along the Pony Express Trail in Utah. BRIAN MCCLATCHY & TIMO SEIDEL 16 AMERICAN HERITAGE 18 AMERICAN HERITAGE Travel America’s Loneliest Road to ride a Ghost Train. PonyExpressNevada.com 1.888.359.9449 Ely Fernley Austin Discover life along the trail. Dayton Fallon Eureka Relive the Pony Express Trail In historic Tooele County, Utah 3HUKDSVWKHPRVWFRPSOHWHDQG ORQJHVWUHPDLQLQJYHVWLJHRIWKH T IDPRXV3RQ\([SUHVV7UDLOLV ooele County IRXQGPLQXWHVZHVWRI6DOW /DNH&LW\LQ7RRHOH&RXQW\8WDK 2YHUPLOHVRIWKHIDPRXV WUDLOUXQVWKHHQWLUHOHQJWKRIWKH U FRXQW\,WLVHDVLO\DFFHVVLEOHE\ TAH YHKLFOHRURQIRRW³ZKLFKPDNHV Pony Express Station at Simpson Springs LWWKHLGHDOVSRWWRH[SHULHQFH WKHWUDLO·VVHVTXLFHQWHQQLDOFHOHEUDWLRQLQ-XQH VLJQLÀFDQWQDWLRQDOHYHQWWKDWFHOHEUDWHVWKHWUDLO·V 2Q-XQHLQ6DFUDPHQWR&$UHHQDFWPHQWULGHUV EULHIH[LVWHQFHIURPWR$OWKRXJKWKH RQKRUVHEDFNDUHVFKHGXOHGWREHJLQWKHPLOH 3RQ\([SUHVVODVWHGRQO\PRQWKVLWFRQQHFWHGD MRXUQH\WRZDUG6W-RVHSK022Q-XQHWKH\·OO FRQWLQHQW·VWZRFRDVWVE\PDLO³DQGOHIWDQLQGHOLEOH SDVVWKURXJKWKHKHDUWRI7RRHOH&RXQW\RQWKHDFWXDO OHJDF\RIJULWW\GDULQJGRDQGSURJUHVVWKDWVWLOO 3RQ\([SUHVV7UDLO%HFRPHSDUWRIWKLVKLVWRULFDQG FDSWXUHVWKHLPDJLQDWLRQWRGD\ 6HHZZZ([SORUH7RRHOHFRP RUFDOO On the Pony Express Trail in Tooele County 20 AMERICAN HERITAGE Reader Service Listing Free Information From Advertisers American Heritage makes choosing 3. Kansas Travel & Tourism: Natural beauty, 7. Sacramento, California: Discover gold travel destinations, products, services, unique destinations, and a proud pioneer at historic and unique Gold Rush-era at - and great reading easier with FREE heritage await visitors to Kansas. Order tractions located throughout the Sacra - INFORMATION from advertisers your FREE Kansas Visitors Guide today! mento region. Stay overnight and enjoy who value your business. Please complete 800-2KANSAS, ext. AH, www.TravelKS.com VIP treatment. www.DiscoverGold.org and mail the postage-paid card today! 4. Travel Nevada: Take the Highway 8: St. Joseph Visitors Bureau: St. Joseph 50 Survival Challenge. Get your FREE Missouri: Experience 13 museums, 12 Pony Express 150th Highway 50 Survival Guide and travel annual festivals, period architecture, Anniversary Guide “The Loneliest Road in America.” and the Pony Express Sesquicentennial in www.TravelNevada.com/heritage 2010. Call for FREE guide! 800-604-4600, 1. All Advertisers in Pony Express Guide: www.StJoMo.com/ponyexpress150.aspx For more information from all advertisers 5. Nevada Pony Express Territory: Experi - in the Pony Express Guide, or select indi - ence the other side of Nevada on the 9: Tooele County, Utah: Tooele County has vidually from the list below. Loneliest Road in America: Highway 50, been a site for rich Western history and is a 2. Independence, MO Tourism Department: paralleling the original Pony Express route. treasure of heritage tourism. 800-378-0690, 888-359-9449, www.PonyExpressNevada.com www.ExploreTooele.com 20 attractions including the Harry S. Tru - 6. Pony Express Museum: man Library & Home, Victorian mansions, Experience If your reader service card is missing, please and National Frontier Trails Museum. the exciting, historic, educational, state- send your request to American Heritage Reader Great shopping, restaurants, and lodging; of-the-art exhibits of the Pony Express Service, 416 Hungerford Drive, Suite 216, minutes from Kansas City. 800-810-4700, in St. Joseph, MO. 800-530-5930, Rockville, MD 20850-4127 www.VisitIndependence.com/AH www.PonyExpress.org State Division Presidents Rich Tatman Lyle Gronewold National Officers: 3112 Federalist Lane 41168 Road 770 David Sanner, President Rancho Cordova, Gothenburg, 601 S. Western Ave CALIFORNIA 95827 NEBRASKA 69138 Blue Rapids, (916) 362-1902 (308) 537-3208 (Home) KANSAS 66411 David Belke Larry McPherson (785) 363-7513 18970 CR 4 2001 Apache Dr. Les Bennington, First VP Julesburg, Stagecoach, Box 757 COLORADO 80737 NEVADA 89429 Glenrock, (970) 854-2362 (Home) (775) 629-0087 WYOMING 82637 email: sundownmc@ (307) 436-9569 (Home) Lyle Ladner earthlink.net 2496 Navajo