Pony Express at St. Joseph

Johnny Fry Starts West

Jul 15, 2006 Mary Trotter Kion

The start of the first run of the Pony Express is delayed while waiting for mail to arrive from Hannibal, Missouri.

To further hold the crowds' interest during the delay that was created because the mail from Hannibal, Missouri was late, William Russell stood to make a brief speech. The crowd had heard enough speeches that monumental day to probably last them a lifetime but, considering that Russell was the most talked about man in America that spring, they quieted down and listened politely.

Johnny Fry Tames the Crowd

Knowing the crowd had already been bombarded with political ortations, Russell kept his words brief. He then turned the attraction over to the young rider who would start the first leg of the journey west. Later, in reporting on the events of the day, the Weekly West identified the rider as:

"Mr. Billy Richardson, formerly a sailor, and a man accustomed to every description of hardship, having sailed for years among the snows of the Northern ocean."

But like so many printed chronicles of the time, their information was mistaken. Other eyewitnesses in St. Joseph insisted that the first rider was Johnny Fry. Fry was a Kansas ranch boy who had ridden in and won several local horse races and "as many girls' hearts." Over time, the records of Russell, Majors & Waddell have been lost but Richardson himself set the record straight when he wrote his memoirs. Richardson denied being the first rider out of St. Joseph and relinquished the honor to the rightful Pony Express rider Johnny Fry.

Just as a brass band was gearing up to play a loud tune a steam whistle from the railroad depot joined in the upcoming concert. The mail from Hannibal, Missouri had arrived.

St. Joseph Chosen as Express Station

The reason that St. Joseph, Missouri had been chosen as the westward starting point for the Pony Express, instead of Leavenworth, Kansas where the headquarters of Russell, Majors & Waddell was located, was that St. Joseph was the westernmost terminus, at that time, of the rails from the East. There was another reason also. St. Joseph had paid handsomely to get the Pony Express stationed there. The city had deeded large tracts of land to the company. In return it would receive the fame, glory, and business that the Pony would bring.

The Pony Express continues at: Pony Express Rider Johnny Fry.

Previous: Pony Express Riders Begin .

The copyright of the article Pony Express at St. Joseph in American History is owned by Mary Trotter Kion. Permission to republish Pony Express at St. Joseph in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.