Looking for a topic (ANY topic!) to write about today, I came across a bit about "Pony Bob" Haslam  and his career as Pony Express rider, Wells Fargo messenger, and entertainer.

The adventures of "Pony Bob" Haslam—so named for his fast riding  for the Pony Express—made him the hero of a novel, Pony Bob, the Reckless Rider of the Rockies, a title rarely found today. Haslam rode 120 miles while wounded, in his Pony Express days, and was best known for covering 380 miles in 36 hours.

The Pony Express lasted only eighteen months, but a guy like Haslam is an asset anytime. Wells Fargo had acquired the Pony Express in its final months and kept Haslam on as a rider between Virginia City  and Sacramento. By 1887, Haslam was ready to show his derring-do in Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show , which took a grand European tour that year. The Wild West Show performed before the crowned heads and Haslam was part of that show.

Just before he was hired on with Buffalo Bill's tour, Haslam was out West selecting a few bison for Buffalo Bill's show. By that time, American Bison herds had decreased by millions in a short time, and from 2 million to 2 thousand in only ten years. One newspaper lamented: "What a sad criterion on the wantonness and heartlessness of the American hunter!"

So this post ends on a strangely sad note, as history often does. It shows all these ironies or paradoxes (take your pick!) that keep Historians combing the books for answers. Here's a guy, Haslam, whose strength and courage landed him fame. Here's the Pony Express, an enterprise doomed to fail but capturing a special place in American lore. Here's Buffalo Bill, whose Wild West Show pretty much laid out the mythic story of the West that we all recognize, even though it's largely false. All these things wrapped up in a moment's tale of Haslam joining Buffalo Bill's show.

Hey, it's what I do!

Posted by Charles at 12:04 PM | Permalink | Comments (5)
Found in Animals, Artifacts, Environment, Hollywood, Misc, Perspective, Pony Express, Remember, Sacramento, Wells Fargo Bank, Westerns

Last weekend, Wells Fargo Historians "horsed around" in the San Francisco History Museum, decorating the premises for the Season. Holiday decorations included a stagecoach full of horses—especially Maggies. Maggie is the eighth limited edition Wells Fargo Plush Pony since 2003. Her real life counterpart represented Wells Fargo in San Francisco's Work Horse Parade in 1909. Now, there are Maggies all over, and inside, the stagecoach.

(And check out the "Make Maggie a Happy Pony!" game. There's also Maggie's pdf Activity book, in spanish as well as english.)

In the Days of Old and the Days of Gold, Wells Fargo moved by horsepower: Wells Fargo stagecoaches were pulled by four or six horses."Horses are the pride of Wells Fargo service," the company declared. "Our most faithful employee and friend"—nicely groomed, harnesses oiled, brass fittings polished, and hitched in matched pairs—was Wells Fargo's best advertisement.

Driving the authentic Concord coach in the Museum is Trixie, originally a paint  from Ardmore, Oklahoma , who prefers to get where she is going sooner rather than later. By her side is an equally large Trixie, riding shotgun. She arrived inWells Fargo's stable of Plush Ponies for the 2005 holiday season.

"Wheelers,"  the big muscular horses closest to the coach, are real Princes. The collectible Plush Pony named for Prince, also from Ardmore, appeared in 2006. Our wheelers are a pair of matched grays , 5 and a half feet long and 11 hands high  in horse talk.

This year, the two Princes got hitched. The blushing brides are two agile Maggies, 5 feet long and 10 and a half hands high. Being smart, they are the pair of leader horses. And yes, the hitching is proper. Just like on Wells Fargo's Overland Stagecoaches of the 1860s, the ribbons go where they should, allowing Trixie to turn Prince and Maggie to the left or right as needed.

(If you're wondering if you can purchase these and how much they cost, the answer is—sorry, you can't. They are not available for sale.)

If you are in downtown San Francisco, come by to see an authentic 4-horse hitch. Say "Hi" to Trixie, Prince, and Maggie—and as a memento, take home a little Maggie from the Museum Store!

Posted by Bob at 11:21 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)
Found in Animals, At Work, Christmas, Holidays, Misc, Museums, Pony Express, San Francisco, Stagecoach, Wells Fargo Bank

Old Sacramento  will be bustling with excitement tomorrow. The Pony Express Re-ride  is scheduled to arrive at 11:30 a.m. After a 10-day journey from St. Joseph, Mo. , the final rider will bring mail to the corner of Second and J streets—right across from the Wells Fargo History Museum. The National Pony Express Association  has been putting on the Re-ride for 30 years, and this year marks the 147th anniversary of the Pony Express.

The Pony Express  is the most widely known short-lived piece of Americana. It lasted only 18 months, from April 3, 1860, to Oct. 25, 1861. Established by the Kansas express firm of Russell, Majors, and Waddell , the Pony Express was in its time the fastest way to get mail to California. It was also the most expensive. In 10 days, riding across 1,966 miles, smallish young men (usually in their early teens) would bring 20 pounds of mail from St. Joseph to Sacramento. The cost to send a letter via Pony Express in those days was five dollars per half ounce, which to the average person was a lot of money. (That’s approximately 120 dollars today.) Due to high expenses and the lack of government subsidies, the Pony Express was going broke a year after its creation.

In April 1861, Wells Fargo took control of the Western portion of the Pony Express. Wells Fargo carried letters from Salt Lake City to Sacramento and San Francisco for the last six months of the Pony Express' existence. Wells Fargo helped reduce the cost of postage from the hefty five dollars to just two dollars a half ounce, then reduced the cost even lower, to one dollar, in July 1861. At these prices the Pony Express became more affordable to people and businesses.

Even with the low rates that Wells Fargo offered, the Pony Express would last only a few more months. Technology would put an end to the legend: The telegraph delivered messages faster than anyone on horseback and for a very low cost. On Oct. 25, 1861, Wells Fargo ended its involvement in the Pony Express, marking the end of the 18-month adventure.

Yet the Pony Express lives on in American lore . And for 10 days each year, riders bring letters from St. Joseph to Sacramento, just as they did 147 years ago. All of us here at the Wells Fargo Museum in Old Sacramento are awaiting the Re-ride  and will let everyone know the legacy that Wells Fargo has shared with such a great piece of American history.

Posted by Greg at 08:45 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Found in Animals, Events, Museums, Participate, Pony Express, Remember, Sacramento, San Francisco, Wells Fargo Bank