Henry Wells and William Fargo, before they got into banking, made their mark on the world operating what service in the west in the 1850s?
History of Wells Fargo because it kept sufficient assets on hand to meet customers' demands rather than transferring all its assets to New York. Surviving the Panic of 1855 gave Wells Fargo two advantages. First, it faced virtually no competition in the banking and express business in California after the crisis; second, Wells Fargo attained a reputation for dependability and soundness. From 1855 through 1866, Wells Fargo expanded rapidly, becoming the West's all-purpose business, communications, and transportation agent. Under Barney's direction, the company developed its own stagecoach business, helped start and then took over Butterfield Overland Mail, and participated in the Pony Express. This
William Fargo Henry Wells and Daniel Dunning, Fargo organized the Western Express which ran from Buffalo to Cincinnati, St. Louis, Chicago and intermediate points, under the name of "Wells & Co". At that time, there were no railroad facilities west of Buffalo, and Fargo, who had charge of the business, made use of steamboats and wagons. In 1845, Daniel Dunning withdrew from the company and in 1846, Henry Wells sold out his interest in this concern to William A. Livingston, who became Fargo's partner in "Livingston, Fargo & Company". In 1850, three competing express companies: "Wells & Company" (Henry Wells), "Livingston, Fargo