Pony Express Riders
The Riders Behind the Legend
Just who were these men (and boys)? They must have craved adventure, been very courageous and been driven by their unique perseverant spirit. Through the dust storms and heat of the expansive Plains and the freezing walls of ice and snow in the Rocky Mountains, they rode with their mission to deliver the mail as fast as their horse could carry it. They were the Pony Express riders, and you can relive their experience as you learn more about the Pony Express National Historic Trail.
While no official company records of all the riders have ever been uncovered, this list has been compiled from various sources including newspaper accounts, secondary sources and family histories. We honor them and their commitment to this legendary part of the American West.
List of Pony Express Riders by Name
James Alcott
Andrew Ole Anderson
J.W. Anderson
John Anson
Henry Avis
Rodney Babbit
Lafayette Ball
James Banks
James Barnell
Jim Baughn
Marve Beardsley
James Beatley
Charles Becker
John Bedford
Thomas Bedford
Martin Bengtson
James Bently
Asher Bigelow
Charles Billman
G.R. Gills
“Black Sam”
“Black Tom”
Lafayette Bolwinkle
Bond
“Boston”
William Boulton
John Brandenburger
James Brink
Hugh Brown
James Brown
James Bucklin
David Burnett
Ed Bush
Henry Butterfield
William Campbell
James Carlin
Gustavas Carlton
Alexander Carlyle
William Carr
William Carrigan
James Carter
Michael Casey
William Cates
James Clark
John Clark
Richard Clarke
Richard Cleve
Charles Cliff
Gustavus Cliff
William Cody
Buck Cole
Bill Corbett
Edward Covington
James Cowan
Jack Crawford
James Cumbo
Louis Dean
James Dennis
William Dennis
Frank Derrick
Alex Diffenbacher
Thomas Dobson
J. Dodge
Joseph Donovan
W.E. Dorrington
Calvin Downs
Tommy Drum
Daniel Drumheller
James Dunlap
William Eckels
Major Howard Egan
Howard Ransom Egan
Richard Erastus Egan
Thomas J. Elliott
J.K. Ellis
Charles Enos
George Fair
H.H. Faust
Josiah Faylor
Johnny Fischer
John Fisher
William Fisher
Thomas Flynn
Jimmie Foreman
Johnny Fry
William Fulkerson
Abram Fuller
George Gardner
James Gentry
James Gilson
Samuel Gilson
Jim Gleason
Frank Gould
“Irish Tom” Grady
Martin Hall
Parley Hall
Sam Hall
Billy Hailton
James “Bean” Hamilton
Sam Hamilton
Robert Haslam
Theodore Hawkins
Sam Haws
Frank Helvey
Levi Hensel
William Hickman
Lucius Ludosky Hickok
Charles Higginbotham
Martin Hogan
Clark Huntington
Lester Huntington
William James
David Jay
William Jenkins
Jennings
Samuel Jobe
William Jones
Jack Keetley
Hiram Kelley
Jay Kelley
Mike Kelly
Thomas King
John Koerner
Harry LaMont
Thomas Landon
George Larkin
William Lawson
Charles Larzelere
James Madison Lenhart
George Leonard
George Little
N.N. Lytle
Joseph Malcom
Robert Martin
Philip Mass (Messero)
Elijah Maxfield
Montgomery Maze
Silas McAulas (Macaulas)
Emmet McCain
J.G. McCall
Charlie McCarty
James McDonald
Pat McEneany
David McLaughlin
James McNaughton
William McNaughton
Lorenzo Meacona
J.P. Mellen
Howard Mifflin
Charlie Miller
James Alexander Moore
John Mussy
Jeramiah Murphy
Newton Myrick
Paul Obershaw
Mathew Orr
Robert Orr
William Johnson Osborn
G. Packard
William Page
Charles Parks
John Paul
“Mochila Joe” Paxton
George Perkins
Joseph Perkins
Edward Pollinger
Charles Pridham
Thomas Ranahan
Theodore Rand
James Randalll
Charles Reynolds
Thomas Reynolds
William Minor Richards
H. Richards
Johnson W. Richardson
Sewell Ridley
Bartholomew Riles
Jonathan Rinehart
Don Rising
Harry Roff
Edward Rush
John Rutsel
Thomas Ryan
Robert Sanders
F.H. Saunders
G.G. Sangiovanni
Henry Clay Scrafford
George Scovell
John Seebeck
Jack Selman
Joseph Serish
James Shanks
John Sinclair
George Smethurst
John Sprague
George Spurr
Edward Sterling
William Streeper
Robert Stricklen
William Strohm
John Sugget
George Talcott
Billy Tate
George Thatcher
J.J. Thomas
Bill Thompson
Charles Thompson
James Thompson
Alexander Toponce
Elias Littleton Tough
William Tough
George Towne
Bill Trotter
Henry Tuckett
Warren Upson
John Wade
Henry Wallace
Jun Waller
John Watson
Daniel Wescott
Michael Whalen
George Wheat
“Whipsaw”
J. Williams
H.C. Wills
Thomas Thornhill Willson
Elijah Nicholas Wilson
Slim Wilson
Ira Wines
Joseph Barney Wintle
Henry Worley
James Worthington
Amos Wright
George Wright
Jose Zowgaltz
Do you have information about a Pony Express rider? Please let us know.
Leave your own family name in a list of members who help share the legend for generations by becoming a Member. Did you know that with your family membership, entrance is free throughout the year – as well as many other benefits you’ll enjoy as you keep the stories, history and spirit of the Pony Express alive.
