Of all the dangers faced by Pony Express riders and station attendants, Indian attack was the most constant and grave. More than two-thirds of the route ran across land inhabited by Native American tribes. West of Salt Lake City, the track cut squarely across hunting grounds of the Paiute (pronounced Pi-yute) and Shoshone tribes, whose hatred and distrust of the white man had grown increasingly intense. Pony rider George Washington "Wash" Perkins, who rode the trail in Utah, remembered, "The Injuns were lurkin' all along the trail, trying to get us. We could see their smoke signals on the hills. It was a pretty dangerous gauntlet to run; but we skirted round every ambush point the best we could, to keep out of range of their arrows and bullets."

Strained Relations

Traditionally, relations between Native Americans and whites on the frontier were strained but...