Wells Fargo has a history of conserving resources through smart business practices, such as recycling waste paper, equipping buildings with solar power, and buying more renewable energy than any other company.
Wells Fargo Express also has had a role in conserving wildlife.
By the early 1900's, many species native to North America were on the verge of extinction 
, including the American bald eagle, the buffalo, and elk. The historic range of the buffalo once ranged from Canada to Mexico, and across the United States into Florida. Bison have since bounced back, and now their numbers have increased to the extent that grocery stores are even selling buffalo meat.
One species of elk — another animal that faced extinction because people hunted them for their hide, antlers, and ivory teeth — was not so lucky. The federal government pronounced the Eastern Elk extinct in 1880.
The historic range of elk included Oregon, and during the early twentieth century the Oregon State Fish and Game Commission developed a plan to restore the elk population.
In 1913, the Commission brought 15 elk from Jackson Hole, Wyoming to Wallowa County, Oregon. As the herd increased in size, Wells Fargo shipped elk to other parts of Oregon. After trapping the young elk, the game warden placed the elk on crates built on sleds and transported them 45 miles to Enterprise, Oregon. From Enterprise, Wells Fargo shipped the elk to Ashland, Oregon. Wells Fargo's Chief Messenger C. T. Allan and Route Agent C. E. Redman accompanied the elk. Once the elk arrived in Klamath Falls, the game warden released the elk into the wild 18 miles from Chiloquin.
Today, elk thrive in Oregon — the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation estimates that Oregon has over 100,000. This video from National Geographic captures the haunting sound of bugling elks in the wild.
A few years ago, I drove past a herd of elk on the south side of I-84, near Cascade Locks. It's great to know that herd could be descended from the elk Wells Fargo shipped from Jackson Hole.
Thanks for the information about elk in Eastern Oregon. My extended family has a ranch outside of Enterprise and we see elk all the time. Good to know WF helped that happen!