Saddles and Spurs: The Pony Express Saga (Bison Book) [Paperback]

Raymond W. Settle (Author), Mary Lund Settle (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 1, 1972 | Series: Bison Book

The story of the Pony Express, which carried transcontinental mail from April 3, 1860 to October 24, 1861, is one of the most invigorating and satisfying episodes in American history. Saddles and Spurs: The Pony Express Saga brings together a storehouse of information about this brilliant operation. Projected against an account of the historical background—the great overland mail issue, the freighting and the stagecoach business, the development of the telegraph and the Pacific railroad—is the narrative of the Pony Express's organization and the laying out of its route; biographical sketches of the founders, company personnel, and riders; and a list and description of the stations. While undertaking their exhaustive research, the authors collected some three hundred photographs, of which more than fifty of the best appear in this volume.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Mary Lund Settle and Raymond W. Settle collaborated on five books and numerous articles about the West.

Product Details

• Paperback: 217 pages
• Publisher: Bison Books (October 1, 1972)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0803257651
• ISBN-13: 978-0803257658
• Product Dimensions: 8 x 5.3 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.1 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,444,532 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Fatal flaw in key information, but still interesting, September 22, 2009

By 

Gridley Jr. (Midwestern US) - See all my reviews

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This review is from: Saddles And Spurs: The Pony Express Saga (Hardcover)

I enjoyed this book - it gave its own flavor to the story of how the Pony Express came about, and the personalities of the principals behind it. I also found it interesting that the authors found so much background information about many of the Pony Express riders themselves, who are seldom individually mentioned elsewhere.

That is why I was so surprised and disappointed to find that they had made a mess of the biography of the most famous Pony Express rider of them all. Robert "Pony Bob" Haslam has, in every book on this subject I've read which was published since the 1800's, been the rider who made the longest ride - made necessary because at stop after stop on his route, either the Indians had run off the stock or killed the stationmaster or his relief rider was afraid to take over. It is also standard, accepted knowledge that Pony Bob made the fastest ride while carrying the inaugural speech of Abraham Lincoln, at a critical moment in California's history as they decided whether to be slave or free. Robert Haslam, "Pony Bob", was known across the Southwest and indeed across the entire country simply by his nickname, and by his courageous history as a rider. So what is the problem with this book? All I can guess is that the authors inadvertently mixed up their notes when they compiled their manuscript, because they have attributed both of these famous rides of Pony Bob, to another rider named William Campbell. I have no doubt that Campbell also was a brave rider and deserving of respect and remembrance, but Robert "Pony Bob" Haslam deserves to have the recognition for those rides he made which simply and clearly exceeded any other records for speed or endurance. In fact, when delivering the inaugural speech of Lincoln on the last leg to California, Pony Bob was attacked by Indians and completed most of his eight-hour ride while seriously wounded, having been shot in the jaw and arm by pursuing Indians. Surely he deserves his due for such performance while injured.

Many riders faced dangers, incredibly hostile weather and riding conditions as they rode round the clock to keep the mail moving. I don't begrudge William Campbell his mention for his own particular exploits. However, Pony Bob died sick, poor, and nearly forgotten in Chicago fifty years after his famous Pony Express days, and he deserves to have his memory preserved accurately. Otherwise, this is a very interesting book.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Pony Express, December 9, 2006

By 

Bomojaz (South Central PA, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Saddles and Spurs: The Pony Express Saga (Bison Book) (Paperback)

I've read this book a number of times over the years and have always been amazed by the shear amount of information it contains on the Pony Express in its relatively short 200 pages. Not only do the Settles give a thorough history of the background and organization of the Pony Express, they also present detailed accounts of the men who rode the horses and carried the mail, of the hundreds of stations along the route and the people who operated them, and of many of the trials and tribulations the company faced during the 18 months of its existence. Prior to the Pony Express, mail was carried from St. Joseph, MO, to California via a circuitous route through Texas and the Southwest; a more direct central route was proposed with the idea of cutting delivery time in half from 20 to 10 days. The Russell, Majors and Waddell freighting company reluctantly assumed the venture, which sparked excitement in the imagination of the public, but was never very profitable and caused the company to lose a great deal of money. The service lasted from April 1860 to October 1861, when the completion of the transcontinental telegraph put it out of business. The Settles do an excellent job conveying not only the nuts and bolts of the operation, but also the dramatic human side of the riders and the dangers and obstacles they faced. It's a great little book, one that will remain on my shelf for a long time to come.

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Background on the Pony Express, March 22, 2006

By 

Shannon Weil (Cool, CA USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Saddles and Spurs: The Pony Express Saga (Bison Book) (Paperback)

This is one of the best books I've read on the Pony Express. The detail in the early years of how Russell, Majors and Waddell ultimately formed their partnership was facsinating. Having covered the entire Pony Express Trail myself, this book answered a lot of questions that still lingered in my mind.