Pony Express Historic Resource Study

RECOMMENDATIONS

The Pony Express National Historic Trail began in St. Joseph, Missouri, and ended in San Francisco, California. The preceding narrative has detailed the contextual history of the Pony Express and delineated a list of 184 potential Pony Express station sites. Each chapter synthesized a wide variety of information from a broad base of sources to give the reader an accurate picture of the history of the Pony Express and the usage of each station and its relationship to other stations. Discrepancies exist regarding several stations' names, locations, and functions (home or relay station). These discrepancies can only be resolved with additional intensive archival research and fieldwork. Furthermore, forty-nine markers depict sites located from St. Joseph to San Francisco related to the Pony Express. Since some of the sources used to substantiate the existence of a Pony Express station, or a building, or marker at station site are not up-to-date, the above figure of 184 potential Pony Express station sites should not be considered definitive.

Twelve of the stations listed in the text as Pony Express stations are currently listed on the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP). They are:

Missouri:

• Pony Express Stables

Kansas:

• Marysville Station

Nebraska:

• Thirty-two Mile Creek Station
• Cold Water/Midway Ranch Station
• Mud Springs Station
• Patee House
• Cottonwood/Hollenberg Station
• Fort Kearney
• Diamond Springs

Wyoming:

• Fort Bridger

Nevada:

• Cold Springs/East Gate Station
• Sand Springs

Though only twelve stations are currently on the NRHP, there is a significant number of standing buildings associated in some way with the Pony Express National Historic Trail that have been documented in the previous chapters. In the author's opinion, all extant standing structures, as well historical archaeological sites, are potentially eligible for listing on the NRHP. Many of the standing structures that are currently not on the NRHP may fall into this category.

Each station site should be evaluated as an NRHP multiple property nomination in accordance with the guidelines detailed in National Register Bulletin No. 16B: How to Complete the National Register Multiple Property Documentation Form, National Park Service, 1991. The author recommends that an intensive field and archival survey of each station's history be completed. Furthermore, those stations that are listed as non-extant may have historic archaeological potential which can only be determined by actual field evaluations by a qualified professional historical archaeologist. Station sites should be evaluated under national, state, and local significance using criteria guidelines set forth in National Register Bulletin No. 15: How to Apply the National Register Criteria for Evaluation, National Park Service, 1991. The Pony Express stations would fall under Criteria A (events that have made a significant contribution to the broad patterns of history) and D (Information that yielded, or may be likely to yield, information important in history). For information on the theme of historic transportation corridors, see various articles in "Historic Transportation Corridors," Cultural Resource Management (ORM) Volume 16, No. 11, 1993. These articles were generated in a Historic Transportation Corridors Conference held at the Northwestern State University of Natchitoches, Louisiana, in late 1992.

SUGGESTIONS FOR FURTHER RESEARCH ON THE PONY EXPRESS NATIONAL HISTORIC TRAIL

There are two primary areas regarding the history of the Pony Express that need further development. First, as suggested earlier, an intensive field and archival survey of each station's history not already listed on the National Register of Historic Places is recommended. This Historic Resource Study demonstrated that there is a paucity of accurate material relating to the specific history of the majority of the 184 potential station sites, especially in Wyoming and Utah. For instance, there are forty-one stations in Wyoming, but only one listed on the NRHP, and in Utah, there are eighteen stations, none of which are listed on the NRHP.

Determining a "definitive list" of station sites and their locations along the Pony Express National Historic Trail should be given high priority in each state. This station list should also determine whether the station site is on private, state, or public lands. Today, federal, state, and local projects are inadvertently and adversely impacting station sites because we do not have definitive data on each station site. For example, recently in Utah, the Army Corps of Engineers was forced to determine the location and eligibility of the Mountain Dell/Dale Station for the NRHP, when the Army Corps was advised that the Pony Express station lay within the Little Dell Lake Project area. [42] Fortunately, Section 106 review process of the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966 caught this issue before information regarding a valuable station site was entirely lost. Other station sites might have a similar fate, unless action is taken soon to determine the eligibility of each station site for the NRHP.

Besides compiling a definitive list of Pony Express station sites, there are many other interesting historical questions that need further research. For instance, what parties received the 35,000 pieces of mail delivered by the Pony Express, and how significant was the news they received from their business partners or others. Only an analysis of the parties listed in the newspapers will determine the answer to this question.

Surprisingly, little scholarly material has surfaced analyzing the ethnic and socioeconomic backgrounds of Pony Express riders and stationkeepers. Before such a study can be undertaken, a "definitive" list of Pony Express riders and stationkeepers needs to be developed. This list should then be analyzed to determine correlations in the backgrounds of individual riders. Were they all of Anglo-American descent, or did they come from diverse ethnic backgrounds, such as Afro-Americans, Mexican-Americans, and Native Americans? Were they all men? Were they all young? How were they recruited? What were the labor conditions they worked under? Was there a high employment turnover rate attributable to the hazards and harsh working conditions of the job? Did women and children live at Pony Express stations, and how did they contribute to the overall operation? All of the above are worthwhile questions to pursue. Yet to date, no serious, scholarly, socioeconomic study of Pony Express riders and stationkeepers and the conditions they worked under has been written.

Though there is an extensive body of literature on the Pony Express, much of it focuses on the "heroic human interest" side of history. Future historical work needs to concentrate on specific data regarding the trail and its operation. By understanding the "real" circumstances behind the Pony Express, we will better understand the significance the Pony Express National Historic Trail, and pass that history on to future generations who wish to follow it across the Trans- Missouri West.

Diamond Springs Pony Express Station, Nevada. Courtesy of Nevada Historical Society Reno, NV