Missouri Mayhem: Mystery & Murder with Mindy & Megan! · Megan Owens & Mindy Johnson

The Pony Express - St. Joseph, Missouri to Sacramento, California

December 22, 2025·33 min·2 clips

Wanted: young, skillful, wiry fellows not over 18, willing to risk death daily. Orphans preferred.

They open by wishing listeners a Merry Christmas and thanking them for their support. Mindy and Megan encourage everyone to enjoy family, friends, holiday traditions, and a little phone-free time. They return to Missouri Mayhem Mystery and Murder and introduce themselves again. The subject shifts to the Pony Express, whose route began right down the street in St. Joe, Missouri. The hosts keep the mood conversational while they mention not recording in a while. They also note that they are recording several episodes that day. December birthdays in the family come up too. That kind of opening keeps the history close and ordinary before it moves into the Pony Express details. When they get to the riders, the specifics come fast. The riders were very small men by design. Many were teenage boys as young as 14. They could not weigh more than 125 pounds. The ad they read asked for "young, skilly, wiry fellows" who were not over 18. It also said the riders had to be expert riders willing to risk death daily. "Orphans preferred" is part of the same blunt pitch. The hosts react to that language with disbelief and curiosity. They want to hear from anyone with family stories tied to the Pony Express. From there, they move into the speed of the service and the math behind it. The goal was 10 miles per hour, with mail taking about 10 days in summer and 16 days in winter. The episode ends with a request for weird or mysterious stories, plus a reminder to like, subscribe, rate, and review before the signoff.

As heard by us

A local origin story that turns Pony Express rules, riders, and recruitment into something vivid.

The Pony Express gets a local, lightly unruly telling here, with the route beginning in St. Joe, Missouri, and the riders' limits doing much of the work.

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Why you'd press play

St. Joseph kicks off a Pony Express story about teenage riders, a 125-pound limit, and a blunt job ad.

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