Last updated: August 7, 2026
Place
Pikes Peak Stables, Pony Express National Museum
NPS Photo
Quick Facts
Location:
914 Penn St, St. Joseph GPS 39.756188 -94.848621
Significance:
The Pony Express National Museum operates at the original 1858 Pike’s Peak Stables in St. Joseph, Missouri. The stables housed Pony Express horses – not riders – from April 3, 1860, through mid-September 1861, when Civil War-related violence in St. Joseph caused the Pony Express to move operations to Atchison, Kansas.
Designation:
Historic site on the Pony Express National Historic Trail.
MANAGED BY:
Amenities
11 listed
Audio Description, Benches/Seating, Cellular Signal, Gifts/Souvenirs/Books, Historical/Interpretive Information/Exhibits, Information - Ranger/Staff Member Present, Parking - Auto, Restroom, Scenic View/Photo Spot, Water - Drinking/Potable, Wheelchair Accessible
The Pony Express National Museum at 914 Penn St, St. Joseph, Missouri, occupies historic Pike’s Peak Stables, where spirited Pony Express horses munched their oats between mail runs in 1860-1861.
“Stagecoach King” Ben Holladay built the wooden Pike’s Peak Stables in 1858 to shelter up to 200 horses for his freighting and stagecoach lines. Two years later, Holladay leased the stables to Russell, Majors & Waddell, the parent company of the Central Overland California and Pikes Peak Express Company—better known as the Pony Express.
The stables were not a Pony home or relay station, but only a place where horses were kept. Riders lived nearby or lodged up the hill at Patee House, a luxury hotel, about 2 blocks east.
Here at the stables, riders saddled their horses and then rode into Patee House to collect the mochila, a quick-change, leather saddle cover with 4 lockable pockets for express mail. From there, horse and rider clattered down to the Missouri River to board a ferry to Elwood, Kansas, and begin the first overland segment of the ride to San Francisco.
The Pony Express quartered its horses at Pike’s Peak Stables from April 1860 through mid-September 1861, when operations shifted to Atchison, Kansas, due to Civil War-related conflict at St. Joseph.
The building eventually was sold and used for various businesses, including a stage line, a mattress factory, and a machinery shop. In 1888, the stables’ original, deteriorating wooden walls were carefully replaced with brick, retaining the original roof and reusing some of the original posts and beams. In 1950, the Goetz foundation restored the building to its 1888 brick appearance and established a museum dedicated to the Pony Express.
At today’s Pony Express National Museum, visitors can view the original stables and Pony Express artifacts, learn about Pony riders at the Hall of Riders, and experience interactive exhibits, programs, tours, and special events. Nearby are the Pony Bar and Goetz Museum, with more stories and artifacts of the Pony Express era, and a replica 1860’s schoolhouse, both open by appointment.
Across the street from the museum is Patee Park, a shady park with a Pony Express monument, benches and picnic tables, and children’s playgrounds.
Site Information
Location (914 Penn St, Saint Joseph, MO 64503)