Pony Express Re-Ride Covers Eight States, Approaches St. Joseph Arrival

The historic Pony Express mail route, which originally connected St. Joseph, Missouri, to Sacramento, California, continues to be commemorated annually through a re-ride event featuring riders relaying commemorative letters on horseback across eight states. This living history tradition, celebrating American grit and determination, sees over 700 riders covering nearly 2,000 miles, with the 2025 event culminating at the Patee House Museum in St. Joseph on June 21. The Pony Express operated for only 18 months in the early 1860s before being made obsolete by the telegraph, but today’s re-ride still carries around 1,000 letters as a novelty. Southwest Wyoming and Sweetwater County are among the stops where the re-ride is visible to the public, including a scheduled stop in Granger. The Pony Express National Museum in St. Joseph offers rich exhibits and authentic artifacts, providing deeper insight into the daring riders and the legacy of this iconic mail service. This celebration continues to connect communities with an important symbol of American history and the Old West.