The Pony Express in St. Joseph, Missouri

Traveling to Missouri, most people visit the Gateway Arch, but on the other side of the state is another place to add to your stop list, St. Joseph.

Located on east side of the Missouri River, St. Joseph is home to The Pony Express Museum, located on the actual grounds of the original Pony Express. Visiting the museum, you get to see artifacts and displays of signs, gear and tools the riders used during this short historical period as people moved west and information had to get to them, as well.

There are even interactive displays including a covered wagon showing what they would have brought (similar to what we carry in our RV’s–down to the cast iron pan) and a part of the floor is covered with a window to see some of the archaeological artifacts still in the earth below.

Evidence shows that Buffalo Bill Cody was one of their young riders. He went on to move west himself as a performer and even settled the town of Cody, Wyoming, named for him.

The museum is open daily and has affordable admission, and took us about an hour to walk through. Knowledgeable volunteers share stories, and they have large spaces for events, if you need.

Since this was an overnight stop for us just for the museum, we didn’t have time for some of the other museums, but heard the Psychiatric Museum is pretty interesting and is a pride for the locals, so is one we will add to our list when we pass back through.

For our overnight stop, we stayed at Beacon RV Park, right in downtown, along the main highway. Even with it’s central location and the busy road, navigating in and parking were simple, and it was pretty quiet. It’s not a large park, and many of the spots were taken by long term guests there working for the season, but everyone was friendly and the rates were reasonable–perfect for what we were looking for since it was too hot to boondock when we passed through.

Have you been to St. Joseph, Missouri?

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