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WonderHistory fact

The Pony Express carried letters by relays of horseback riders across the American West, from St. Joseph, Missouri, to Sacramento, California, in about ten days. Famous as it became, it ran for only about 18 months, from April 1860 to October 1861.

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The story behind the card

The service was set up by the freight firm Russell, Majors and Waddell, which hoped to win a government mail contract. Riders changed to fresh horses at a chain of stations along a route of about 3,000 kilometres and rode day and night in all weather. Postage was expensive: at first 5 dollars for every half ounce, about 14 grams. Its best-known feat came in November 1860, when news of Abraham Lincoln's election reached California newspapers 7 days and 17 hours after the East Coast papers. But the business never paid, and the transcontinental telegraph, completed on 24 October 1861, could send a message across the continent almost at once. The Pony Express announced its closure two days later. Its legend grew afterwards: William Cody, later the showman Buffalo Bill, told stories of riding for it as a teenager, though they may have been exaggerated.

Türkçe oku
Pony Express, Amerika'nın batısında mektupları bayrak yarışındaki gibi elden ele devreden atlı postacılarla taşırdı: Missouri'deki St. Joseph'ten Kaliforniya'daki Sacramento'ya yaklaşık on günde. Bu kadar ünlenmesine karşın yalnızca 18 ay kadar, Nisan 1860'tan Ekim 1861'e dek çalıştı.

Hizmeti, devletten posta ihalesi almayı uman nakliye şirketi Russell, Majors and Waddell kurdu. Yaklaşık 3.000 kilometrelik yol boyunca bir istasyonlar zinciri kuruldu; postacılar bu istasyonlarda dinlenmiş atlara geçip her havada gece gündüz yol aldı. Posta ücreti pahalıydı: Başlangıçta her yarım ons, yani yaklaşık 14 gram için 5 dolar. En ünlü başarısı Kasım 1860'ta geldi: Abraham Lincoln'ın seçildiği haberi, Doğu Yakası gazetelerinden yalnızca 7 gün 17 saat sonra Kaliforniya gazetelerine ulaştı. Ancak iş hiç kâr etmedi. 24 Ekim 1861'de tamamlanan kıtalararası telgraf hattı ise kıtanın bir ucundan öbürüne neredeyse anında mesaj iletebiliyordu. Pony Express iki gün sonra kapandığını duyurdu. Efsanesi yıllar içinde büyüdü: Daha sonra Buffalo Bill adıyla ünlenen şovmen William Cody, gençken Pony Express'te atlı postacılık yaptığını anlatırdı; ama bu hikâyeler abartılmış olabilir.

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Background reading: Pony Express
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