Outstanding Pony Express Covers from the George J. Kramer Collection continued...

Sender's "Pony Express" Directive. Mostly complete blue folded letter addressed to B. Eugene Auger in San Francisco with "13th Novb" (1860) date notation at lower left of address panel, from Cesar Auguste Robert with report on wine market in France, blue "Cesar Aug. Robert New-York" double-oval handstamp, no other markings

VERY FINE. A RARE EXAMPLE OF PONY EXPRESS MAIL ORIGINATING OUTSIDE THE UNITED STATES.

Cesar Auguste Robert, whose blue oval handstamp is struck at lower left, was a New York importer/exporter specializing in California and French wines. The addressee, B. Eugene Auger, was a French immigrant who became a successful wine merchant and producer in California. Robert and Auger engaged in extensive business correspondence related to the wine business.

This letter originated with Robert in France on November 13, 1860. It was probably carried from Le Havre to New York on the November 14, 1860, sailing of the Havre Line's Arago, which arrived on November 28. The Havre Line's two ships, Arago and Fulton, were commissioned as transport ships during the Civil War and did not return to service until late in 1865.

Allowing time for Robert's New York office to process the mail received from the Arago, this could have been transported to St. Joseph for the Thursday, December 6, 1860, westbound Pony trip. The December 6 mail was received in San Francisco on December 20, a slightly longer trip due to winter weather. However, Auger's name does not appear in the Daily Alta California's published lists of addressees for the Pony Express arrivals in December 1860 or January 1861. Since this letter bears no markings, it is possible that it was bundled with other letters and sent to another addressee in San Francisco for distribution. This type of mail without Pony Express markings is not listed in the FKW census--only a few are known. (Image)

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"Pony Express Paid $2.50, Silver City March 7th/61". Manuscript express marking and "X" cancel on 10¢ Green on Buff Nesbitt entire (U16) with red Wells Fargo & Co. printed frank, addressed to Ephraim Brigham in Natick, Massachusetts, "Via Carson City UT Mch 7/61" manuscript express marking in a different hand--at Carson City the cover was placed into the way-mail pouch of the mochilla carried on the Pony trip that departed San Francisco on Wednesday, March 6, 1861, passed through Carson City March 7, and arrived in St. Joseph on March 20--entered the mails with green "Saint Joseph Mo. Mar. 21" double-circle datestamp and matching grid cancel, tears in backflap and also into red frank and embossed stamp at right (skillfully sealed)

VERY FINE APPEARANCE. ONE OF SIX RECORDED PONY EXPRESS COVERS ORIGINATING IN NEVADA AND THE ONLY ONE FROM SILVER CITY. THIS IS THE EARLIEST RECORDED USE OF A WELLS FARGO & COMPANY FRANKED ENTIRE FOR PONY EXPRESS MAIL.

The Pony Express mochilla had four pouches. Three were used for mail originating at the San Francisco and St. Joseph offices. The letters were bundled and wrapped in water-resistant oiled silk, then placed in the pouches, which were locked for the entire trip (only certain offices had the key). The fourth pouch was used for way mail, which was collected at stations along the route and placed into the pouch by the station agents.

Carson City was located on the Pony Express route in Nevada Territory, which was established as a territory on March 2, 1861, just five days before this cover was given to the Pony rider. The Carson City marking uses the "U.T." designation for Utah Territory. Before Nevada Territory was established, the Washoe region was considered part of western Utah. Carson City became the first territorial capital.

Silver City was located about 11.5 miles northeast of Carson City. In 1861 Silver City had a population of 1,200 and served as a vital link between the Comstock mines and the processing mills located near Dayton and along the Carson River. This cover was given to Wells Fargo & Co.'s office at Silver City and prepaid $2.50 for Pony Express service (quarter-ounce rate). The red printed frank paid for express service from Silver City to the Pony station at Carson City. John W. Grier was the first Wells Fargo agent for the area in and around Silver City, a position he held until his death in 1885.

Pony Express way-mail covers from Nevada are very rare. This cover came to light shortly before it was acquired by George Kramer in a 2006 Schuyler Rumsey auction. It was added to the FKW online census as E60A, and is the first recorded and only known Pony Express cover from Silver City.

FKW Census E60A. With 2006 P.F. certificate. (Image)

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Pony Express, San Francisco, Apr. 17 (1861). Running Pony oval datestamp in red clearly struck on 10¢ Green on White Nesbitt entire (U15) addressed to A. W. Canfield, care of George Updyke & Co., New York City, sender's directive "Pony Express", no indication of $2.00 rate, carried on the Pony trip that departed San Francisco on Wednesday, April 17, 1861, and arrived in St. Joseph on April 30, entered the mails with green "St. Joseph Mo. Apr. 30" circular datestamp, small opening slit at top, faint stain spot at bottom right

VERY FINE. ONE OF THE FINEST EXAMPLES OF THE SAN FRANCISCO RUNNING PONY OVAL IN RED AND THE ONLY RECORDED RED STRIKE WITH A DATE. THIS APRIL 17, 1861, EASTBOUND TRIP FROM SAN FRANCISCO MARKED THE BEGINNING OF THE $2.00 PER HALF-OUNCE RATE PERIOD.

The April 17 trip was the first to occur in San Francisco after notice of the new $2.00 rate was received from St. Joseph by Pony Express. This marks the beginning of what postal historians call Rate Period 3, and it is also the early stage of Phase II, known as the Interim Phase, in which the Pony Express was operated as a joint private enterprise by COC&PP (now controlled by Holladay) and the Overland Mail Company, with Wells Fargo & Company acting as agents for the business. Starting on April 15, newspaper ads announced the new rates and that Wells Fargo would receive Pony Express mail (see first notice opposite).

The FKW census lists only five covers with the San Francisco Running Pony oval (SF-RP) struck in red instead of blue (see table below). The earliest has a blank date field and is used with the "Central Overland California & Pike's Peak Express Company, San Francisco, Cal." oval (SF-COCPP) dated March 20, 1861, also struck in red. The next sequential cover in the FKW census is an April 4, 1861, way-mail use from Sacramento without San Francisco markings. Following that are three covers sent from San Francisco on the same trip--April 13, 1861--each of which has the undated Running Pony oval in red and red SF-COCPP dated April 13. Finally, the fifth recorded cover (offered here) has a Running Pony red oval with the date inserted--April 17--and without the SF-COCPP oval. Two other covers from this April 17 trip are recorded (E69–offered in lot 15– and E70), both of which have the Running Pony dated oval struck in blue, not red. There are tiny flecks of blue ink present in the red strike on this cover. Changes in management and operations could be factors explaining why red ink was temporarily used by the San Francisco office.

From a collecting standpoint, this cover is the finest example of the red San Francisco Running Pony oval. An equally fine strike is found on the cover to England (E64), but the overseas use is of far greater significance and value. The strike on E63 is also very clear, but the upper right corner of the 10¢ entire has been cut out and repaired. The E61 and E65 covers have lightly inked strikes. The cover offered here (E67) is clearly struck with all details of the marking fully inked and visible.

FKW Census E67. Illustrated in Frajola-Kramer-Walske, The Pony Express: A Postal History (page 45). Ex Haas and "Edwards" (Grombacher). With 1966 P.F. certificate. (Image)

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Pony Express, San Francisco, Apr. 17 (1861). Running Pony oval datestamp in blue struck on 10¢ Green on Buff Nesbitt entire (U16) addressed to Charles Arthur Ely in Elyria, Ohio, no indication of $2.00 rate, carried on the Pony trip that departed San Francisco on Wednesday, April 17, 1861, and arrived in St. Joseph on April 30, entered the mails with bold green "St. Joseph Mo. Apr. 30" circular datestamp, with original letter enclosure datelined San Francisco, April 17, 1861, from Henry Leffingwell at 6 Montgomery Block, concerning debts incurred by Charles Ely and demanding reimbursement--"I send this by Pony, because I cannot wait any longer"

VERY FINE. THIS APRIL 17, 1861, EASTBOUND TRIP FROM SAN FRANCISCO MARKED THE BEGINNING OF THE $2.00 PER HALF-OUNCE RATE PERIOD. PONY EXPRESS COVERS WITH ORIGINAL LETTER ENCLOSURES ARE VERY RARE.

The April 17 trip was the first to occur in San Francisco after notice of the new $2.00 rate was received from St. Joseph by Pony Express. This marks the beginning of what postal historians call Rate Period 3, and it is also the early stage of Phase II, known as the Interim Phase, in which the Pony Express was operated as a joint private enterprise by COC&PP (now controlled by Holladay) and the Overland Mail Company, with Wells Fargo & Company acting as agents for the business. Starting on April 15, newspaper ads announced the new rates and that Wells Fargo & Company would receive Pony Express mail.

The FKW census lists three covers from this trip. Two have the San Francisco Running Pony oval struck in blue (the other cover has a partly restored address) The third is the cover offered in lot 14, which has the dated Running Pony oval in red with tiny flecks of blue ink. Changes in management and operations could be factors explaining why red ink was temporarily used by the San Francisco office.

Henry Leffingwell, a San Francisco real estate agent with offices at 6 Montgomery Block, was a frequent newspaper advertiser, offering properties for sale or rent. According to the letter, Leffingwell had provided considerable financial assistance to his friend, Charles A. Ely, and was demanding payment of the long overdue debt.

Information about Charles Arthur Ely (1829-1864) may be found at OhioHistory.org: "[he] was the son of Heman Ely, who founded the city of Elyria. Ely attended Elyria High School and at the Scientific School in Cambridge, Massachusetts. He was interested in science, and played a prominent role in creating both the Natural History Society of Elyria and the Lorain County Agricultural Society. In 1852 he visited South America as an agent for the Goodyear Rubber Company. Two years later he married Louise Caroline Foote in Cleveland, Ohio. Facing declining health, the Elys went on an extended trip to China at his doctor's orders. Returning to Elyria in 1860, Ely pursued several philanthropic causes. In his will he provided for the establishment of a public library, which opened in 1870."

FKW Census E69. Signed by Stanley B. Ashbrook and illustrated in his Special Service (pages 225-226, photo 120). Illustrated in Nathan-Boggs, The Pony Express (page 39). From our 1985 Rarities of the World sale (Sale 645, lot 8). (Image)

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Wells Fargo & Company Pony Express, $4.00 Green (143L2). Position 15, large margins to clear at left, used with $2.00 Red (143L1), Position 3, clear to ample margins except in at top, tied by clear strike of "Pony Express, San Francisco, Jun. 26" (1861) Running Pony oval datestamp on 10¢ Green on Buff Star Die entire (U33) addressed to Eugene Kelly & Co., 164 Fulton Street, New York City, embossed Donohoe, Ralston & Company corner card beneath stamps, sender's directive "Pony Express June 26th" and carried on the Pony trip that departed San Francisco on Wednesday, June 26, 1861, and arrived in St. Joseph on July 8, entered the mails with bold green "St. Joseph Mo. Jul. 8" circular datestamp, no obvious evidence of missing stamps, but it is presumed that two 10¢ stamps were affixed overlapping the embossed stamp and were removed from the cover, since the triple $2.00 per half-ounce express fee would require corresponding triple 10¢ rate postage, Pony Express stamps have creases and sealed tears, and have been lifted and reaffixed

VERY FINE APPEARANCE. THIS IS THE ONLY RECORDED COVER WITH THE $4.00 GREEN AND ONE OF TWO WITH A COMBINATION OF HORSE & RIDER STAMPS. WIDELY REGARDED AS ONE OF THE GREATEST PONY EXPRESS COVERS AND AN IMPORTANT ARTIFACT OF WESTERN AMERICAN POSTAL HISTORY.

The Wednesday, June 26, 1861, Pony mail from San Francisco was carried on the penultimate eastbound trip during the Phase II (Interim) operational period and Rate Period 3. From April 1, through June 30, 1861, the rate for a Pony Express letter was $2.00 per half-ounce. The $2.00 Red and $4.00 Green Horse & Rider stamps were issued in April 1861 by Wells Fargo & Company for use on mail from the West. On July 1, the new government mail contract for overland mail on the Central Route and the Pony Express took effect, and the rate was reduced to $1.00 per half-ounce. A new $1.00 Red stamp was issued, and the colors of the $2.00 and $4.00 were changed to Green and Black, respectively.

The FKW census records 37 covers with the First Issue $2.00 Red (143L1) and $4.00 Green (143L2) stamps, including 36 with a single $2.00 and this unique cover with a $4.00 (and $2.00). The only other Horse & Rider combination cover is offered as lot 24--it is stamped with the July 1861 $1.00 Red and $2.00 Green.

The $2.00 and $4.00 were printed by lithography in sheets of 20 (5 wide by 4 high). Rather than build up the printing stone from intermediate transfer groups or from a primary matrix containing the denomination, the printers used a blank matrix to enter each subject on the stone for each value. This required a total of 40 transfers (20 for each value). The denomination (shaded numerals "2" and "4") then had to be individually transferred to each subject on both stones, thus requiring another 40 separate transfers. It seems incredible that experienced lithographers such as Britton & Rey did not simplify the process by using intermediate transfers. The $2.00 Green and $4.00 Black July 1861 issue were printed from the same stones used to print the April 1861 issue.

This cover originated in San Francisco and was carried by steamer to Sacramento, which was the original western terminus for the actual Pony relay, but starting with the July 7, 1860, trip, the terminus was moved to Folsom, located at the eastern end of the Sacramento Valley Railroad line. On July 1, 1861, the terminus was moved farther east to Placerville. The addressee, Eugene Kelly & Company, was a prominent banking firm. In June 1860 the banking firm of Donohoe, Ralston & Company was opened in San Francisco. The principals were Joseph Donohoe, William Ralston, Eugene Kelly and Ralph Fretz. Eugene Kelly & Company in New York served as the East Coast representative. William Ralston, the renowned California financier, lost all of his wealth in the aftermath of the Panic of 1873. He drowned while swimming in San Francisco Bay, which was attributed to a stroke, but thought by many to have been suicide.

FKW Census E105. Illustrated in Ashbrook's Special Service (pages 225-226, photo 304), Coburn, Letters of Gold (page 259), Frajola-Kramer-Walske, The Pony Express: A Postal History (page 48) and Walske-Frajola, Mails of the Westward Expansion, 1803 to 1861 (page 227). Ex C. E. Chapman (faint "CEC" handstamp at lower left), Alfred H. Caspary, Raymond H. Weill Co., Siegel 1967 and 1970 Rarities of the World sales (Sale 313, lot 165, and Sale 371, lot 216), and Dr. Leonard Kapiloff (acquired privately by George Kramer). With 1957 and 2019 Philatelic Foundation certificates. (Image)

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Wells Fargo & Company Pony Express, $2.00 Red (143L1). Position 16, mostly large margins, ample to just touched at right, tied by blue "Wells, Fargo & Co., Carson City, Jun. 16" (1861) oval datestamp on 10¢ Pale Green on Buff Nesbitt entire (U18a) to William B. Taylor, current postmaster of New York City, with red Wells Fargo & Co. frank printed twice over green Freeman & Co. frank, sender's directive "Pr Pony Express June 16/61"--at Carson City the cover was placed into the way-mail pouch of the mochilla carried on the Pony trip that departed San Francisco on Saturday, June 15, 1861, passed through Carson City June 16, and arrived in St. Joseph June 27--entered the mails with green "St. Joseph Mo. Jun. 27" circular datestamp and matching grid cancel on 10¢ embossed stamp, cover restored at top with some paper added and part of red printed frank inked in, $2.00 stamp has faint crease and tiny repair at top right

VERY FINE APPEARANCE. THIS COVER IS THE EARLIEST OF EIGHT RECORDED EXAMPLES OF PONY EXPRESS USAGE OF OBSOLETE FREEMAN & COMPANY FRANKED ENTIRE WITH THE WELLS FARGO & COMPANY OVERPRINT -- AMONG THE EIGHT, IT IS ONE OF FOUR WITH THE $2.00 RED, THE ONLY WAY-MAIL USAGE AND THE ONLY ONE ORIGINATING IN NEVADA TERRITORY.

John Freeman was an agent for Adams & Co. at the time of the firm's spectacular Lehman-like collapse in February 1855. He ran the Freeman & Co. Express until November 1859, then sold out to Wells Fargo & Co. The unused supply of 10¢ embossed envelopes bearing Freeman & Co.'s green frank was overprinted with the Wells Fargo & Co. red frank in two directions. Some of these were used to send letters by Pony Express. There are eight examples recorded in the FKW census, evenly divided between $2.00 and $1.00 Horse-and-Rider stamp frankings (see table below).

This cover was datestamped on June 16, 1861, by the Wells Fargo & Co. office at Carson City in Nevada Territory. The $2.00 Red paid the Pony Express fee (Rate Period 3), and the red frank presumably paid for Wells Fargo service from another location. Carson City was situated on the Pony Express route, and this cover was added to the mochilla containing the mail that originated in San Francisco on Saturday, June 15. The mochilla had four pouches. Three were used for mail originating at the San Francisco and St. Joseph offices. The letters were bundled and wrapped in water-resistant oiled silk, then placed in the pouches, which were locked for the entire trip (only certain offices had the key). The fourth pouch was used for way mail, which was collected at stations along the route and placed into the pouch by the station agents.

Pony Express way-mail covers are rare, as are Pony covers originating in Nevada Territory. Only five covers from Carson City are recorded in the FKW census: E23, E30, E60A, E97 and E152. This is the only one with the Freeman & Co. overprinted frank. The addressee, William B. Taylor, served briefly as New York City's postmaster, from January 16, 1861, through March 20, 1862.

FKW Census E97. Illustrated in Needham-Berthold, Handstamped Franks: Used as Cancellations on Pony Express Letters 1860 and 1861 and the Pony Express Stamps and Their Use (reprint of Collectors Club Philatelist articles, July and October 1927) and Nathan-Boggs, The Pony Express (page 41).

Ex Lichtenstein (Costales Apr. 26-27, 1950, lot 5) and J. David Baker (Image)

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California Pony Express, New-York, Apr. 6 (1861). Partly clear strike of ultramarine oval datestamp on 10¢ Pale Green on Buff Nesbitt entire (U16a) with Wells Fargo & Company black printed frank, addressed to James Pullman, Sansome and Sacramento Streets, San Francisco, no indication of $2.00 rate (Rate Period 3) and no government post office markings, carried by Wells Fargo to St. Joseph where green "Pony Express, The Central Overland California & Pikes Peak Express Company, St. Joseph, Mo. Apr. 14" large oval within circle datestamp was applied before the cover was carried on the Sunday, April 14, westbound trip to San Francisco, some minor toning around edges

VERY FINE. THIS IS THE EARLIEST RECORDED WESTBOUND PONY EXPRESS COVER FROM THE PHASE II OPERATIONAL PERIOD AND RATE PERIOD 3. THE USE OF THE WELLS FARGO & COMPANY BLACK FRANK IS VERY UNUSUAL--ONLY ONE OTHER IS RECORDED (AN EASTBOUND USE).

The Phase II (Interim) operational period and Rate Period 3 started in St. Joseph on April 1, 1861, and the first westbound trip left on Thursday, April 4, followed by trips on Sunday, April 7, and Thursday, April 11. No covers from these three trips are recorded. The cover offered here is the earliest recorded westbound mail to which the new $2.00 per half-ounce rate and Phase II handling procedures applied.

Wells Fargo & Company became involved with the Pony Express in April 1861 and issued stamps for use in the West and a franked entire for use in the East. The first Pony Express frank--Type I--was printed in red on the 10¢ Green on White Nesbitt entire (U15). Several unused examples of the Type I frank are known, but only two used examples are recorded, dated with the "California Pony Express New-York" oval on May 7 and June 22, 1861 (FKW W41 and W43). The rarity and dates of use of the Type I frank suggest it was used briefly and with limited distribution before the Type II franked entire was issued after July 1.

This cover is a fascinating Interim Phase usage. The black frank is found on only two Pony Express covers. The other is on the 3¢ Star Die entire to France with a $1.00 Red Pony Express stamp and blue San Francisco Running Pony oval dated July 27, 1861 (E126). It was sent unpaid to France, and the 3¢ embossed stamp counted for nothing. The cover offered here is a westbound use, and the sender presumably used the 10¢ franked entire to pay postage and the Wells Fargo fee during the Interim Phase.

A puzzling aspect of this cover is the lapse between the April 6 New York date and the April 14 St. Joseph date. Typically, there is a difference of four or five days. A few covers are known with an 8-day difference. In this case, the mail might have just missed the April 11 departure and was datestamped for the next trip on April 14.

FKW Census W38. Illustrated in Walske-Frajola, Mails of the Westward Expansion, 1803 to 1861 (page 228). (Image)

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Wells Fargo & Company Pony Express, $1.00-$4.00 Horse & Rider Issues (143L1-143L5). Unused set of all five Horse & Rider stamps including $2.00 Red and $4.00 Green First Issue (April 1861) and $1.00 Red, $2.00 Green and $4.00 Black Second Issue (July 1, 1861), 143L1 part original gum, others no gum, all have four margins (mostly clear to large), 143L3 and 143L4 slight creases and thin spots, others sound

FINE-VERY FINE OR SIMILAR APPEARANCE. AN ATTRACTIVE UNUSED SET OF WELLS, FARGO & COMPANY'S HORSE & RIDER STAMPS ISSUED FOR USE ON THE LEGENDARY PONY EXPRESS.

Commencing July 1, 1861, the Pony Express was authorized by Congress to carry mail at the rate of $1.00 per half-ounce. Although the Scott Catalogue lists the July 1861 issue Pony Express stamps (143L3-143L6) with other private post issues, we wish to emphasize that these stamps were issued under the terms of a government mail contract; therefore, they have semi-official status. Although some of the Horse & Rider stamps were remaindered, they are scarce and the vast majority do not have gum or four margins. (Image)

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Wells Fargo & Company Pony Express, $1.00 Red, Broken Leg (143L3 var). Position R9 upper left stamp in block of four (R9-10/13-14), unused (no gum), large margins, bright color, tiny pinhole in bottom left stamp does not affect the variety or the appearance of this beautiful block

EXTREMELY FINE BLOCK OF THE PONY EXPRESS $1.00 HORSE & RIDER ISSUE CONTAINING THE ONLY MAJOR FLAW ON THE PRINTING STONE OF 40 SUBJECTS--THE BROKEN LEG VARIETY.

This is the most distinctive plate flaw found on any Pony Express stamp. Only nine examples are known to us, including four locked up in full sheets. Blocks containing the Broken Leg variety are extremely rare. (Image)

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Wells Fargo & Company Pony Express, $1.00 Red (143L3). Position L9, three full margins to slightly in at left, tied by clear strike of blue "Pony Express, San Francisco, Sep. 14" (1861) Running Pony oval datestamp with matching "PAID" in oval handstamp, used with 30¢ Orange (38) to pay Prussian Closed Mail rate, tied by "Atchison, Kan. Sep. 27" double-circle datestamp on Civil War patriotic cover depicting three-quarter portrait of George Washington and quote from his Farewell Address--"To the Efficacy and Permanency of Your Union, A Government for the whole is indispensible", no imprint but similar to illustrations and type used by Hutchings & Rosenfield of San Francisco (two other known examples of this design are used from Stockton, California, and Vancouver, Washington Territory).

The cover is addressed to Mr. H. Hauschildt at Elmshorn in Schleswig-Holstein, then under Danish crown rule, with sender's directive "by Hamburg" (18.5 miles south of Elmshorn) and in the same hand on back "Stadt Altona"--Altona was a Danish harbor town on the Elbe river.

The cover was carried on the Pony Express trip departing San Francisco on Saturday, September 14, 1861, and arriving in Atchison, Kansas, on September 27. At this date the western terminus for the Pony relay was at Placerville, and the eastern terminus had been moved from St. Joseph to Atchison, due to Confederate bushwacker attacks on railroad lines near St. Joseph. From Atchison it was sent by railroad to New York for the October 5 sailing of the Hamburg-American line's Saxonia, which off-loaded the mail at Southampton on October 17. Mail for the German-Austrian Postal Union (GAPU) was transported to Aachen for processing. From there the cover was sent north to Hamburg. Since Elmshorn was located in Schleswig-Holstein, then under the Danish monarchy's rule, the cover was turned over to the Royal Danish Postal Agency in Hamburg and transported to Elmshorn. Danish postage was collected from the addressee.

The sequential transit markings follow the route described above: red "N.York Am. Pkt. 7 Paid Oct. 5" (1861) 7¢ credit datestamp dated on the departure day of the HAPAG Saxonia; red framed "AACHEN 19 10/FRANCO" (October 19) transit datestamp and matching framed "FRANCO/PREUSS. RESP. VEREINS/AUSGANGS-GRENZES" handstamp (Paid to the GAPU Border); "HAMBURG 20 10" (October 20) datestamp on back; "KDOPA HAMBURG 20/10" (October 20) Royal Danish Postal Agency in Hamburg double-circle datestamp on back; "HOLST. EISENB. POST SP. BUREAU Z2 20/10". (Holsteinisches Eisenbahn Postspeditions Bureau) Holstein railway datestamp on back; red crayon "4" on front for postage due in Danish rigsbank skilling.

THIS EXTRAORDINARY COVER HAS SEVERAL RARE OR UNIQUE ATTRIBUTES--IT IS:

ONE OF THREE RECORDED CIVIL WAR PATRIOTIC COVERS CARRIED BY PONY EXPRESS, TWO OF WHICH ARE IN PRIVATE HANDS

ONE OF SIX PONY EXPRESS COVERS TO DESTINATIONS OUTSIDE THE UNITED STATES, AND OF THOSE SIX, IT IS THE ONLY COVER TO DENMARK OR GERMANY, THE ONLY PATRIOTIC COVER, AND ONE OF FOUR WITH A PONY EXPRESS STAMP

THE ONLY PONY EXPRESS COVER WITH A 30-CENT POSTAGE STAMP.

The overall condition of the cover is excellent. We note that the 30¢ stamp has a few short or toned perfs, there are two vertical creases at center of cover clear of stamps, an edge tear above the "Paid" handstamp is sealed, and the cover has been lightly cleaned.

FKW Census E160. Illustrated in Ashbrook, The United States One Cent Stamp of 1851-1857, Vol. II (page 294), Brookman, The United States Postage Stamps of the 19th Century (page 259), Nienken, The United States Ten Cent Stamps of 1855-1859 (page 238), Coburn, Letters of Gold (page 77), AMERIPEX '86 color feature in Chronicle 130, Frajola-Kramer-Walske, The Pony Express: A Postal History (page 78), and Walske-Frajola, Mails of the Westward Expansion, 1803 to 1861 (page 231).

Ex Lawrence L. Shenfield, Katherine Matthies (exhibited at SIPEX 1966; Siegel 1979 Rarities of the World, Sale 544, lot 251, to Paliafito), Robert Paliafito (sold privately to Ishikawa) and Ryohei Ishikawa (Christie's Robson Lowe sale, Sep. 28-29, 1993, lot 355, to George Kramer). (Image)

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Wells Fargo & Company Pony Express, $1.00 Red (143L3). Position L1, ample margins, bright shade, small tear at top and diagonal crease at lower right, tied by clear strike of blue "Wells, Fargo & Co. Express, Folsom" oval handstamp, bold strike of blue "Pony Express, Sacramento, Jul. 4" (1861) oval datestamp on 10¢ Green on White Star Die entire (U32) with Wells Fargo & Company printed red frank, addressed to Miss Drucilla A. Beach, Massena, New York, pen cancel on embossed stamp, no post office markings, carried with the mail that left San Francisco on July 3, 1861, the first trip under the new government mail contract--with original letters datelined at Folsom, the first on July 1 from Mrs. E. D. Shirland, cousin of Charles R. Shirland, and the second on July 3 from Charles; Mrs. Shirland writes: "My Dear Cousin, If not cousin now I hope it soon will be as Cousin Charlie has informed me of an engagement existing between yourself and him. He also has told me of his intentions of sending for you to come to California" and warns her to avoid travelers who are "not fit companions for a lady to associate with"; Charles informs Drucilla that he has sent her $50 and another $350 draft (the receipt for this Wells Fargo draft is located in their archives), explains her travel arrangements, and states that it is 2:00 p.m. (on July 3) and "the Pony starts on his journey overland to the Eastern states at 4 o'clock."

EXTREMELY FINE. THE ONLY RECORDED PONY EXPRESS COVER FROM FOLSOM, WHICH MADE A JOURNEY IN BOTH DIRECTIONS--24 MILES WEST FROM FOLSOM TO SACRAMENTO, WHERE IT WAS PLACED IN THE MOCHILLA, THEN BACK EAST TO FOLSOM AND ONWARD FROM PLACERVILLE BY PONY EXPRESS ON THE FIRST TRIP UNDER THE NEW GOVERNMENT CONTRACT.

The government awarded the mail contract along the Central Route to the Overland Mail Company on March 12, 1861, effective July 1. The contract paid $1,000,000 per year for mail/passenger service along the Central Route and required the company "...during the continuance of their Contract, or until completion of The Overland telegraph, to run a Pony Express semi-weekly at a Schedule time of ten days eight months of the year and twelve days four months of the year, and to convey for the Government free of charge five pounds of Mail Matter; with liberty of charging the public for transportation of letters by said express not exceeding One dollar per half ounce..."

This period of operation is known as Phase III, which corresponds to Rate Period 4 (July 1-October 24, 1861). On July 1 Wells Fargo & Co. issued new stamps and envelopes to reflect the agreed-upon government contract rate for the Pony Express. The fee for Pony Express service between Placerville and St. Joseph (or Atchison) could not exceed $1.00 per half-ounce. If Wells Fargo & Co. carried the letter by express to or from Placerville (for example, from San Francisco), an extra express fee was charged. If the sender used one of Wells Fargo & Co.'s stamped envelopes with the printed frank and 10¢ embossed postage, the total amount paid was $1.20 ($1.00 for Pony Express service plus 20¢ for additional express charge and postage). The Wells Fargo ad noted that "letters not enclosed as above [in government franked envelopes] will be charged at the rate of 25 cents each [in addition to the $1.00 Pony Express fee]." Since the July 1 commencement date of the new contract was known well in advance at both the eastern and western terminal offices, the $1.00 rate went into effect simultaneously, and new stamps were ready for the first eastbound trip.

The first trip under the new contract was an eastbound departure from San Francisco on July 3. It is not known when this mail arrived in St. Joseph, but the Confederate bushwackers' destruction of rail lines and bridges on the Hannibal & St. Louis Railroad had already caused disruptions, presaging the Platte Bridge Railroad Tragedy of September 1861 which prompted the relocation of the eastern terminus from St. Joseph to Atchison. Another cover from this trip is known, with a San Francisco July 3 Running Pony datestamp (FKW E109, Siegel Sale 979, lot 30). Both covers entered the mail without datestamps; the July 3 cover was cancelled on arrival with a New York City grid, and this July 4 cover was pen-cancelled.

The unusual east-to-west and west-to-east journey this cover took is probably best explained by the timing. Rather than hold the cover until the Pony mochilla passed through Folsom, it was sent by train to Sacramento to meet the express there. The Sacramento office applied its July 4 oval datestamp and the cover made its way back to Folsom and on to Placerville, where the Pony relay started.

FKW Census E110. Illustrated in Coburn, Letters of Gold (page 259) and Frajola-Kramer-Walske, The Pony Express: A Postal History (page 60). Ex Haas. With 1982 P.F. certificate. (Image)

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