Central Overland California and Pikes Peak Express Company

[3][4] Its stage lines ran from St. Joseph, Missouri, to Denver and Salt Lake City and it succeeded the George Chorpenning contract for mail service from Utah to California in May 1860.

When the Pony Express became obsolete upon completion of the Transcontinental Telegraph, the business ran out of cash and was sold to Ben Holladay for $100,000.

As the United States expanded westward in the early 19th century, the military erected forts and supply depots to protect and support this expansion.

In 1854, Quartermaster General Thomas Jesup decided to change the system and implemented a single two-year contract to supply most of the posts west of the Missouri River.

William Waddell was a store owner in Lexington, Missouri, who was described as "phlegmatic, stoical, ... a cautious penny-pincher, and unable to reach a decision without ponderous deliberation.

"[5] In 1852 Waddell partnered in a wholesale trading firm with William Hepburn Russell, a good-looking entrepreneur of mixed success with social ambitions.

Three months after forming their partnership, the firm of Russell, Majors, and Waddell received a two-year contract to supply all the military posts west of the Mississippi River.

The relationship between the three men were generally fine; Majors and Waddell had a similar conservative temperament and though Russell was the opposite, he was often on the East Coast seeking new contracts and investments.

The division of labor between the three partners of Russell, Majors, and Waddell was an important component in their success and the experience gained in organizing and managing the freighting enterprise served them well in their future endeavors.

The success of the firm in handling the War Department's freighting naturally made them the choice for the next round and in February 1857 they signed the second contract.

Believing that this gold rush was the start of heavy emigration to the region, Russell, together with John S. Jones a former freighting partner, gathered new investors, borrowed money, and organized a stage and express line to run to Denver.

[8] The new firm surveyed and laid out a 687-mile route, built twenty seven stations, bought new coaches and mules, and hired enough men to tend to all their holdings.

The town of Denver had donated 53 lots to the Leavenworth City & Pike's Peak Express Company and celebrated the first arrival with an "extra" published by the Rocky Mountain News.

The firm constructed new stations along the route, sixteen to forty miles apart, providing rooms and food for passengers and barns for mule teams.

On October 28, 1859, the three men entered into a new partnership which assumed the assets and debts of the Leavenworth City & Pike's Peak Express Company.

Less than a month later, and likely without consulting his partners, Russell named the new firm the Central Overland California & Pike's Peak Express Company or C.O.C.

The firm used their considerable organizational expertise to construct stations, build roads, supply horses and equipment and hire stationmasters, mail agents, and riders in order to open the route from St. Joseph, Missouri, to Sacramento, California, on time.

While the route followed the same roads as the Leavenworth City & Pike's Peak Express stage line many had to be repaired or upgraded to accommodate the new traffic.

[11] In the first month of existence, the Pony Express riders experienced violent weather, harsh terrain, and the physical hardship of being in a saddle for up to 100 miles a day.

Although the number of letters being sent were not enough to offset the company's expenses, many communities along the line found the service valuable for the news the riders brought and there was talk of rival express operations in the planning stages.

Due to lost personnel, stations, and horses the Pony Express was forced to suspend operations between Carson Valley and Salt Lake City through the end of June.

The Pony Express recommenced service at the end of June, though hostilities between the Paiute and settlers didn't cease until August.

With the company running low on funds a bill was brought before Congress to subsidize the Pony Express for weekly or semi-weekly trips, but it failed to pass.

As raids on Pony Express stations continued, Russell, Majors, and Waddell decided that if Congress did not subsidize the route, they would end the enterprise in January 1861.

The Post Office Department renewed their St. Joseph to Salt Lake City contract on October 28 and usage of the Pony Express continued to rise through the end of the year.

[13] With the physical (not financial) success of the Pony Express and the fact that the ocean service was set to expire in June 1860, a contract looked promising.

William Russell, after an unsuccessful trip to New York to raise more funds, met with Godard Bailey, a relative of Secretary Floyd.

Though Russell, Majors, and Waddell failed, the Central Overland California and Pikes Peak Express Company was a separate entity and it continued to operate.

[13] When Texas seceded from the Union in 1861, they destroyed the Butterfield Overland Mail line and effectively cut off communication from California to the east over land.

[14] With the Civil War begun, the Pony Express was the fastest way to transmit information from east to west and thus found itself in high demand.