Pony express how long

Launched in April , it operated for less than 19 months before the first trans-continental telegraph line was completed, connecting California to East Coast cities, no ponies necessary.

The system officially shuttered on October 26, , and the last remaining mail was delivered soon after. Pony Express riders typically rode for 75 to miles at a stretch, but they changed horses many times over the course of their journey to ensure that their steeds could go as fast as possible.

The stations were about 10 miles apart, and at every station, they changed mounts, swapping out their steeds up to 10 times a ride; the whole enterprise involved about horses.

However, those steeds may not have been ponies in the proper sense—by definition, ponies are small breeds of horse under Accounts of the types of horses used by the Pony Express vary; in his autobiography , Pony Express co-founder Alexander Majors wrote that "The horses were mostly half-breed California mustangs, as alert and energetic as their riders, and their part in the service sure-footed and fleet was invaluable.

Alexander Majors, alongside co-founders William Russell and William Waddell, had just two months to get the Pony Express up and running—a more complicated task than it might sound. They not only had to buy hundreds of horses, but build enough stations that riders could change horses every 10 miles or so—meaning more than stations across the West.

The stations were usually located in remote areas decided by route efficiency rather than construction or supply convenience. Contrary to myth, Pony Express riders weren't speeding across the landscape in cowboy hats wearing fringe-covered buckskins and toting guns.

They were trying to minimize the weight their horse had to carry in every way, including in their dress. In Roughing It , Mark Twain who, we should note, was not always known for his adherence to the truth described seeing a rider for the Pony Express speed by wearing clothes that were "thin, and fitted close; he wore a 'round-about,' and a skull-cap, and tucked his pantaloons into his boot-tops like a race-rider. Twain goes on to say that the rider was unarmed. Very few company records exist for the Pony Express, making it hard to confirm who was really involved.

Much of what we know about the entire endeavor is myth, exaggerated and reworked in tales told long after the route was shut down. Even first-person accounts tend to be full of inaccuracies—in one first-person recollection, for instance, a man who says he was born in claims he rode for the Pony Express for three years, ending in , 20 years after the last mail was delivered [ PDF ].

And the service's most famous rider, Buffalo Bill Cody , may not have even been a rider at all. Historians disagree on whether or not there's enough reliable evidence to prove whether or not he worked for the operation, which only employed about 80 men plus substitutes , according to the National Park Service.

Letters and newspapers traveled the entire length of the line from St. Joseph to Sacramento. The telegrams went only between the rapidly advancing wire ends. The Pony Express was officially terminated. In November the last Pony Express letters completed their journey. In the western states, the majority of the trail has been converted, over the years, to double track dirt roads.

Short pristine segments, believed to be traces of the original trail, can be seen only in Utah and California. However, approximately historic sites may eventually be available to the public, including 50 existing Pony Express stations or station ruins. Learn more about trail life, trail impacts on indigenous people, how the trail shaped history, and more!

Interested in learning more or planning a visit? Take a look at places along the Trail. Follow the trail with auto tours that closely parallel the historic route s. The tour for each state includes a map image and driving directions that provide opportunities for discovering the remnants and significant resources of the trail. Explore This Park. Info Alerts Maps Calendar. The Pony Express ceased service just two days later.

Despite operating for only 19 months, its riders had successfully delivered some 35, pieces of mail and traveled more than half a million miles across the American frontier. But if you see something that doesn't look right, click here to contact us! Twice a week we compile our most fascinating features and deliver them straight to you. Live TV. This Day In History. History Vault.