Pony Express Bible

Description

The special edition leather-bound Bible was given to all the employees by the operators Russell, Majors and Waddell. Its dimensions are about 5.7 inches (14.5 cm) tall by 3.6 inches (9.1 cm) wide and a little over 2 inches thick. It has 1,278 double-columned pages.

The copies of the Bible were specifically commissioned by Alexander Majors and contained full versions of both the Old and New Testaments. The firm had originally purchased these special copies for their company's wagon-train employees. The Bibles had gold lettering on the cover with a contemporary inscription and the wording, "Presented by Russell, Majors & Waddell. 1858". The source for the Old and New Testaments was an 1858 King James Version published by the American Bible Society in New York City.

On commencing employment, a Pony Express rider was given one of the special edition Bibles. The rider had to swear to and sign the frontier pledge of loyalty, honesty, and sobriety, that was on the inside front cover of the Bible:

"I, ......, do hereby swear, before the Great and Living God, that during my engagement, and while I am an employee of Russell, Majors, and Waddell, I will, under no circumstances, use profane language, that I will drink no intoxicating liquors, that I will not quarrel or fight with any other employee of the firm, and that in every respect I will conduct myself honestly, be faithful to my duties, and so direct all my acts as to win the confidence of my employers, so help me God."

It appears that the 183 riders employed from April 1860 to November 1861 did not take the pledge very seriously as, on the whole, they were considered dreadful, rough and unconventional.

Background

Alexander Majors, one of the original operators of the Pony Express, had religious convictions and required certain principles be held that he related to the Christian Bible. Examples were not to swear in public or drink intoxicating alcoholic beverages and that each rider was to honor Sunday as a day of rest. Initially the Pony Express riders were issued certain pieces of equipment to carry, which included a bowie knife, and the Pony Express Bible. Later, most of this hardware was abandoned because it was too heavy to carry and looked upon as extra unnecessary items for their journey. Some sources say that the riders carried the Bible given them, at least in the beginning. Other sources say the riders never carried their Bible since it added weight that would slow down the pony they were riding. Many of the riders took only a single pistol with an extra cylinder of bullets on their rides. Some didn't even take a gun, depending instead on the speed of their pony for their greatest defense against hostilities.

Locations

The Forty-fifth Annual Report of the American Bible Society shows 300 copies of the Bibles granted May 9, 1861, to Major and Russell by the American Bible Society. Of as the last record known of a 1960 'census' there were 12 copies left in existence. There have been only two of these Bibles that were made available for public purchase since 1980.

Overland Mail Company

The Pony Express route that the riders used went through the Territories of Utah, Nebraska and Kansas sharing relay stations with the Butterfield Overland Mail Company stagecoach line. The Overland Mail Company eventually did take over the western portion of the Pony Express route that went to Sacramento, California, when the Pony Express firm was dissolved in 1861. The Pony Express route went through what are now the states of Missouri, Kansas, Nebraska, Wyoming, Colorado, Utah, Nevada, and California.

The Overland Mail Company station operators likely had copies of the American Bible Society’s 1859 edition of the Bible similar to the 1858 Pony Express Bible.

Pawn Stars

On the Pawn Stars television program in season 8, episode 55 called "Ponies and Phonies" (April 24, 2014), the Overland Mail Company Bible is compared to the Pony Express Bible by rare book consultant Rebecca Romney.