175^th Anniversary Pony Express Riders:

Coordinating the Pony Express Ceremonial rides and horses - Shelley Scott- Rector riding Freya

Rider Jennifer Stultz riding Merry

Rider Courtney Towes riding Tiger Lilly

Click here to try your luck at some NS Pony Express TRIVIA! There are prizes to be won!

Calling all Equestrian Riders! Take the 175th Anniversary Pony Express Challenge!

Learn more about our Pony Express Rider's Challenge !

Scroll down to see even more challenges and Pony Express features! 

175th Anniversary Pony Express

Background:

The Nova Scotia Pony Express was the beginning of a communication race to get the latest European and London Stock Exchange news to New York City. During nine months in 1849, fast Royal Mail steamers brought dispatches from Great Britain to Halifax, Nova Scotia.

Two riders and 12 fast horses rode the dispatches the 144 miles from Halifax to Victoria Beach, Annapolis County.  When a rider arrived in Granville Ferry to change horses for the final time, a hunting horn was sounded in advance so that the stable boy at the Entertainment House would be ready with a fresh horse. That same hunting horn was also used to notified soldiers across the river at Fort Anne to fire a cannon. 

That cannon could be heard 18 miles downriver at Victoria Beach. This notified the fast chartered steamship to power up as that process took time. The rider would then arrive at the wharf to pass along the dispatch and then it carried the news across the Bay of Fundy to Saint John, New Brunswick, where it was telegraphed to New York. 

This effort undertaken by six New York Newspapers lead to the Associated Press. In today’s instant worldwide news communication, it is indeed a wonder to learn how they shared important news in 1849. 

A National Historic Sites Monument, Victoria Beach stands a testament to this important historic venture.

In 2024, Annapolis County, NS, celebrates the 175th Anniversary of the Nova Scotia Pony Express. 1849-2024.

For more information :  Debra Ryan, Director of Community Development dryan@annapoliscounty.ca