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Apr 3, 2018 19:36:10   #
Loki Loc: Georgia
 
Today in 1860, the Pony Express began delivering mail and packages. Although the service was supposedly terminated in 1861, I seem to remember getting deliveries from them in New Mexico a hundred years later.

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Apr 3, 2018 20:10:17   #
slatten49 Loc: Lake Whitney, Texas
 
1860, Pony Express debuts

On this day in 1860, the first Pony Express mail, traveling by horse and rider relay teams, simultaneously leaves St. Joseph, Missouri, and Sacramento, California. Ten days later, on April 13, the westbound rider and mail packet completed the approximately 1,800-mile journey and arrived in Sacramento, beating the eastbound packet’s arrival in St. Joseph by two days and setting a new standard for speedy mail delivery. Although ultimately short-lived and unprofitable, the Pony Express captivated America’s imagination and helped win federal aid for a more economical overland postal system. It also contributed to the economy of the towns on its route and served the mail-service needs of the American West in the days before the telegraph or an efficient transcontinental railroad.

The Pony Express debuted at a time before radios and telephones, when California, which achieved statehood in 1850, was still largely cut off from the eastern part of the country. Letters sent from New York to the West Coast traveled by ship, which typically took at least a month, or by stagecoach on the recently established Butterfield Express overland route, which could take from three weeks to many months to arrive. Compared to the snail’s pace of the existing delivery methods, the Pony Express’ average delivery time of 10 days seemed like lightning speed.

The Pony Express Company, the brainchild of William H. Russell, William Bradford Waddell and Alexander Majors, owners of a freight business, was set up over 150 relay stations along a pioneer trail across the present-day states of Missouri, Kansas, Nebraska, Wyoming, Colorado, Utah, Nevada and California. Riders, who were paid approximately $25 per week and carried loads estimated at up to 20 pounds of mail, were changed every 75 to 100 miles, with horses switched out every 10 to 15 miles. Among the riders was the legendary frontiersman and showman William “Buffalo Bill” Cody (1846-1917), who reportedly signed on with the Pony Express at age 14. The company’s riders set their fastest time with Lincoln’s inaugural address, which was delivered in just less than eight days.

The initial cost of Pony Express delivery was $5 for every half-ounce of mail. The company began as a private enterprise and its owners hoped to gain a profitable delivery contract from the U.S. government, but that never happened. With the advent of the first transcontinental telegraph line in October 1861, the Pony Express ceased operations. However, the legend of the lone Pony Express rider galloping across the Old West frontier to deliver the mail lives on today.

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Apr 3, 2018 20:14:37   #
slatten49 Loc: Lake Whitney, Texas
 
Also, This Day In History, April 3rd

A chronological timetable of historical events that occurred on this day in history. Historical facts of the day in the areas of military, politics, science, music, sports, arts, entertainment and more.

628 In Persia, Kavadh sues for peace with the Byzantines.
1367 John of Gaunt and Edward the Black Prince win the Battle of Najera, in Spain.
1559 Philip II of Spain and Henry II of France sign the peace of Cateau-Cambresis, ending a long series of wars between the Hapsburg and Valois dynasties.
1860 The Pony Express connects St. Joseph, Missouri and Sacramento, California.
1862 Slavery is abolished in Washington, D.C.
1865 Union forces occupy the Confederate capital of Richmond, Virginia.
1882 The American outlaw Jesse James is shot in the back and killed by his cousin, Bob Ford.
1910 Alaska's Mount McKinley, the highest mountain in North America is climbed.
1920 F. Scott Fitzgerald and Zelda Sayre are married at St. Patrick's Cathedral in New York City.
1936 Bruno Hauptmann, killer of the Lindbergh baby, is executed.
1942 The Japanese begin their all-out assault on the U.S. and Filipino troops at Bataan.
1944 The U.S. Supreme Court rules that black citizens are eligible to vote in all elections, including primaries.
1948 President Harry Truman signs Marshall Plan. It will revive war-torn Europe.
1966 Three-thousand South Vietnamese Army troops lead a protest against the Ky regime in Saigon.
1972 Charlie Chaplin returns to the United States after a twenty-year absence.
1984 Coach John Thompson of Georgetown University becomes the first African-American coach to win an NCAA basketball tournament.

Born on April 3

1783 Washington Irving, American writer (The Legend of Sleepy Hollow, Rip Van Winkle).
1822 Edward Everett Hale, American clergyman and author (Man without a Country).
1823 William Macy "Boss" Tweed, New York City political boss.
1837 John Burroughs, nature writer.
1842 Hermann Karl Vogel, German astronomer.
1888 Gertrude Bridget "Ma" Rainey, American singer, "the mother of the blues."
1898 Henry R. Luce, magazine publisher, founder of Time, Fortune and Life.
1924 Marlon Brando, actor (On the Waterfront, The Godfather).
1924 Doris Von Kappelhoff [Doris Day], American singer and actress.
1930 Helmut Kohl, chancellor of the Federal Republic of Germany.
1934 Jane Goodall, British anthropologist, known for her work with African chimpanzees

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Apr 3, 2018 21:10:42   #
archie bunker Loc: Texas
 
slatten49 wrote:
Also, This Day In History, April 3rd

A chronological timetable of historical events that occurred on this day in history. Historical facts of the day in the areas of military, politics, science, music, sports, arts, entertainment and more.

628 In Persia, Kavadh sues for peace with the Byzantines.
1367 John of Gaunt and Edward the Black Prince win the Battle of Najera, in Spain.
1559 Philip II of Spain and Henry II of France sign the peace of Cateau-Cambresis, ending a long series of wars between the Hapsburg and Valois dynasties.
1860 The Pony Express connects St. Joseph, Missouri and Sacramento, California.
1862 Slavery is abolished in Washington, D.C.
1865 Union forces occupy the Confederate capital of Richmond, Virginia.
1882 The American outlaw Jesse James is shot in the back and killed by his cousin, Bob Ford.
1910 Alaska's Mount McKinley, the highest mountain in North America is climbed.
1920 F. Scott Fitzgerald and Zelda Sayre are married at St. Patrick's Cathedral in New York City.
1936 Bruno Hauptmann, killer of the Lindbergh baby, is executed.
1942 The Japanese begin their all-out assault on the U.S. and Filipino troops at Bataan.
1944 The U.S. Supreme Court rules that black citizens are eligible to vote in all elections, including primaries.
1948 President Harry Truman signs Marshall Plan. It will revive war-torn Europe.
1966 Three-thousand South Vietnamese Army troops lead a protest against the Ky regime in Saigon.
1972 Charlie Chaplin returns to the United States after a twenty-year absence.
1984 Coach John Thompson of Georgetown University becomes the first African-American coach to win an NCAA basketball tournament.

Born on April 3

1783 Washington Irving, American writer (The Legend of Sleepy Hollow, Rip Van Winkle).
1822 Edward Everett Hale, American clergyman and author (Man without a Country).
1823 William Macy "Boss" Tweed, New York City political boss.
1837 John Burroughs, nature writer.
1842 Hermann Karl Vogel, German astronomer.
1888 Gertrude Bridget "Ma" Rainey, American singer, "the mother of the blues."
1898 Henry R. Luce, magazine publisher, founder of Time, Fortune and Life.
1924 Marlon Brando, actor (On the Waterfront, The Godfather).
1924 Doris Von Kappelhoff [Doris Day], American singer and actress.
1930 Helmut Kohl, chancellor of the Federal Republic of Germany.
1934 Jane Goodall, British anthropologist, known for her work with African chimpanzees
Also, This Day In History, April 3rd br br A chro... (show quote)


April 3rd, 2017, I overslept, and was late for work. I didn't arrive until 1:20 am.

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Apr 3, 2018 22:00:17   #
slatten49 Loc: Lake Whitney, Texas
 
archie bunker wrote:
April 3rd, 2017, I overslept, and was late for work. I didn't arrive until 1:20 am.

Dammit, Arch How did I miss that

I apologize, profusely. It won't happen again.

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Apr 4, 2018 02:07:26   #
lindajoy Loc: right here with you....
 
slatten49 wrote:
Dammit, Arch How did I miss that

I apologize, profusely. It won't happen again.


Wellllllll, by the looks of things I suspect you had to cut it short or miss breakfast<<<

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Apr 4, 2018 07:31:09   #
Big dog
 
archie bunker wrote:
April 3rd, 2017, I overslept, and was late for work. I didn't arrive until 1:20 am.

Same here. Except I got to work 7 minutes late.

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Apr 4, 2018 13:31:38   #
badbobby Loc: texas
 
Loki wrote:
Today in 1860, the Pony Express began delivering mail and packages. Although the service was supposedly terminated in 1861, I seem to remember getting deliveries from them in New Mexico a hundred years later.


pony prolly got lost Loki

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Apr 4, 2018 16:32:09   #
slatten49 Loc: Lake Whitney, Texas
 
lindajoy wrote:
Wellllllll, by the looks of things I suspect you had to cut it short or miss breakfast<<<


I don't miss breakfast.

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Apr 5, 2018 07:41:45   #
lindajoy Loc: right here with you....
 
slatten49 wrote:
I don't miss breakfast.


Ha, the conviction in this reply could be felt to my tummy too!!!! Lololl
I am absolutely sure you do not miss any meal!!! A bit to hold you over, enjoy~~~

Tell me how are you able to stay so thin????



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Apr 5, 2018 07:42:44   #
lindajoy Loc: right here with you....
 
badbobby wrote:
pony prolly got lost Loki


I love, love, love your Avi!!!!!

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Apr 5, 2018 08:02:00   #
slatten49 Loc: Lake Whitney, Texas
 
lindajoy wrote:
Ha, the conviction in this reply could be felt to my tummy too!!!! Lololl
I am absolutely sure you do not miss any meal!!! A bit to hold you over, enjoy~~~

Tell me how are you able to stay so thin????

Good, clean living, a high metabolism and a young(er) wife...three months younger.

Reply
Apr 5, 2018 08:16:46   #
badbobby Loc: texas
 
lindajoy wrote:
Ha, the conviction in this reply could be felt to my tummy too!!!! Lololl
I am absolutely sure you do not miss any meal!!! A bit to hold you over, enjoy~~~

Tell me how are you able to stay so thin????


tell me who said he was thin???

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Apr 5, 2018 08:37:21   #
slatten49 Loc: Lake Whitney, Texas
 
badbobby wrote:
tell me who said he was thin???

Well, I'm only about 5 lbs. off from that avatar of me.

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Apr 5, 2018 08:42:14   #
badbobby Loc: texas
 
slatten49 wrote:
Well, I'm only about 5 lbs. off from that avatar of me.


you're lucky
seems like the pounds are being attracted to me
as I age
even though I'm not a big eater
and I still exercise
they sadly just keep coming

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