St Joe, June 16

We went downtown and toured the Pony Express Museum and the Fire Fighter's Museum. The top picture is of us putting mail into the rider's mantilla. At the time of the first ride in April, 1860, a 1/2 ounce letter cost $5.00! And we thought today's mail was getting expensive! By the time the Pony Express ended in 1861, lighter paper had been developed, and the cost was down to $1.00 per 1/2 ounce. Each rider rode 80 miles, changing horses every 9-15 miles. When a rider had completed his 80 miles (about 10 hours in the saddle), he would stay at the station and meet the rider from the opposite direction and take the mail back to his home station. Tradition has it that there were two young ladies on the trail who waited for the express riders and gave them cookies. They put holes in the middle to make them easier to grab and hold as the rider raced by, and the story is that that was how donuts were invented....fact or fiction?

At the Fire Fighter's Museum we toured Engine Company No. 5, which was manned by 4 men on 24 hour shifts. They had two ladder trucks - a 1948 and 1952. We learned that the pole that firemen came down was invented by the St. Joseph, MO firemen. It was discontinued when it was decided it was unsafe for them to come down the pole; at that point fire stations started being built on one floor.

We went for a walk on Museum Hill, where all the rich had their mansions. It's sad to see that the majority of them are in disrepair, many are boarded up, and others have been made into multiple apartments. Their architecture was really impressive, and I can imagine what they were like when they were owned by the original families who built them.

The second picture above was taken in the grand ballroom of the Patee House Museum yesterday. Couldn't resist the chance to dance! We also learned at the Museum yesterday that newsman Walter Cronkite was born in St. Joe, as was actress Jane Wyman.

Tomorrow we plan to see the Twin Spires Cathedral (formerly Immaculate Conception/Queen of the Apostles Church) in downtown St. Joseph. It's only open on Tuesdays and Thursdays for tours. Also plan to visit the founder's Robidoux Row Museum.