Existing comment:
Moving West:
The ocean routes of the 1840s and 1850s opened up the West Coast, but did nothing to encouragement settlement in the vast territories between the Mississippi River and California. To help open up the interior, Congress provided money for mail contracts with stagecoach lines.
By 1851, mail moved on three routes -- between Independence, Missouri, and Salt Lake City, Utah; Independence and Sante Fe, New Mexico; and Sacramento, California and Salt Lake City -- often on a monthly basis. These overland mail routes helped attracts settlers and commerce to the new region. |