In the summer of 1857, General Albert Sidney Johnston, later of Civil War fame, was sent out with a Federal army of five thousand men to invade Utah.  After a rather fruitless campaign, Johnston wintered at Fort Bridger, in what is southwestern Wyoming, not far from the Utah line.  During this interval, army supplies were hauled from Fort Leavenworth with only a few way stations for changing teams.  This improvised line, carrying mail occasionally, which went over the old Mormon trail via South Pass, and Forts Kearney, Laramie, and Bridger, was for many months the only service available for this entire region.

The next contract for getting mail into Utah was let in 1858 to John M. Hockaday of Missouri.  Johnston’s army was then advancing from winter quarters at Bridger toward the valley of Great Salt Lake, and the Government wanted mail oftener then once a month.  In consideration of $190,000.00 annually which was to be paid in monthly installments, Hockaday agreed to put on a weekly mail.  This route, which ran from St. Joseph to Salt Lake City, was later combined with a line that had been running from Salt Lake to Sacramento, thus making a continuous weekly route to and from California.  For the combined route the Government paid $320,000.00 annually.  Its actual yearly receipts were $5,142.03.

The discovery of gold in the vicinity of Denver in the summer of 1858 caused another wild excitement and a great rush which led to the establishment in the summer of 1859 of the Leavenworth and Pike’s Peak Express, from the Missouri to Denver.  As then traveled, this route was six hundred and eighty-seven miles in length.  The line as operated by Russell, Majors, and Waddell, and that same year they took over Hockaday’s business.  As has already been stated, the new firm of Pony Express fame — called the Central Overland California and Pike’s Peak Express Co. — consolidated the old California line, which had been run in two sections, East and West, with the Denver line.  In addition to the Pony Express it carried on a big passenger and freighting business to and from Denver and California.

Turning now to the lines that were placed in commission farther South.  The first overland stage between Santa Fe and Independence was started in May, 1849.  This was also a monthly service, and by 1850 it was fully equipped with the famous Concord coaches, which vehicles were soon to be used on every overland route in the West.  Within five years, this route, which was eight hundred fifty miles in length and followed the Santa Fe trail, now the route of the Atchison, Topeka, and Santa Fe railroad, had attained great importance.  The Government finally awarded it a yearly subsidy of $10,990.00, but as the trail had little or no military protection except at Fort Union, New Mexico, and for hundreds of miles was exposed to the attacks of prairie Indians, the contractors complained because of heavy losses and sought relief of the Post Office and War Departments.  Finally they were released from their old contract and granted a new one paying $25,000.00 annually, but even then they fell behind $5,000.00 per year.