Description
The Pony Express Centennial Association was incorporated (1958) to
foster and facilitate commemorations of the centennial of the Pony
Express (1860-1861). The man principally responsible for promoting this
Association was retired Air Force Lt. Col. Waddell Smith, a grandson of
one of the partners in the firm Russell, Majors and Waddell which had
operated the Pony Express. The Records of the Pony Express Centennial Association consist principally of the correspondence
of Waddell Smith. The collection also contains financial records, reports, clippings, other materials Smith gathered and some
correspondence of Edwin H. Burgess, Director of the Washington D.C. Branch of the Centennial Association.
Background
The Pony Express Centennial Association was incorporated (1958) to foster and facilitate commemorations of the centennial
of the Pony Express (1860-1861). The man principally responsible for promoting this Association was retired Air Force Lt.
Col. Waddell Smith, a grandson of one of the partners in the firm Russell, Majors and Waddell which had operated the Pony
Express. A collector of Pony Express artifacts and an authority on the history of the company, Smith served as President of
the Association. Association activities included a multi-state historic marker program and a two-way reenactment across the
original route with a thousand volunteer riders.
Restrictions
Copyright is protected by the copyright law, chapter 17 of the U.S. Code. All requests for permission to publish or quote
from manuscripts must be submitted in writing to the Head of Special Collections. Permission for publication is given on behalf
of Special Collections, General Library, University of California, Davis as the owner of the physical items and is not intended
to include or imply permission of the copyright holder, which must also be obtained by the researcher.
Availability
Collection is open for research.