Lot
393 
The Central Overland California & Pikes Peak Express Company/Denver City. K.T. (Kansas Territory, now Colorado) Jun 13. Black oval handstamp on cover to Nebraska City, Nebraska Territory, entered the mails with "St. Joseph, Mo., Jun 20" blue-green cds, franked with 1857 3¢ dull red tied by black manuscript grid cancel, slightly reduced at left, Very Fine. Estimate $300 - 400.
Realized: $270
Lot
394
The Central Overland California & Pikes Peak Express Company / St. Joseph, Mo. Jun 18. Black oval handstamp on 1860 3¢ Star Die entire with "Platte City, Mo, Jun 13" balloon origin cds to Denver City, Kansas Territory (now Colorado), care of the "C.O.C.&PP. Express, St. Joseph, Mo.", skillfully repaired at right and the bottom with part of the cds and "Mo." of the address painted in, top backflap replaced, cover also cleaned, Very Fine appearance. Estimate $100 - 150.
Realized: $260
Lot
395
The Central Overland California & Pike's Peak Express Company/St. Joseph. Neat blue oval handstamp on yellow cover from Iowa franked with 1857 3¢ dull red tied by bold straight line "Paid" handstamp with matching "Pacific City, Ioa." cds, addressed to Mountain City, K.T., which later became part of Colorado Territory, endorsed "Care C.O.C & P.P. Express/St. Joseph" at bottom left, flap missing & small repair at top, just affecting marking, Extremely Fine appearance. Estimate $500 - 750.
Realized: $1,000
Lot
396
Central Overland California & Pike's Peak Express Company/Aug. 10/Denver City, K.T. Bold oval handstamp on 1860-61 3¢ Star Die entire to Pacific City, Iowa, carried by express to Missouri and deposited in the mails with green "St. Joseph, Mo./Aug. 16" cds, reverse with 2nd strike of "Central Overland California & Pike's Peak Express Company/Jul/Denver City, K.T." oval with Jul month slug but no date, probably carried by C.O.C & P.P. from the mines to Denver, slightly reduced at left, Very Fine. Estimate $500 - 750.
Realized: $375
Lot
397
Central Overland California & Pike's Peak Express Company/Mar. 23./Denver City, K.T. Neat oval handstamp on cover to Wisconsin franked with 1857 3¢ dull red (couple trivial blunt perfs) tied in transit by two strikes of green "Saint Joseph, Mo." double circle postmark with 3rd strike at bottom right, additionally struck with green oval "Central Overland California & Pike's Peak Express Company/St. Joseph, Mo." express marking, slightly reduced at right, Very Fine and attractive. Estimate $500 - 750.
Realized: $675
Lot
398
Central Overland California & Pike's Peak Express Company/Denver K.T. Undated oval handstamp used as company frank on 1853-55 3¢ Nesbitt entire to Iowa with "Central Overland California & Pike's Peak Express Company/Denver K.T./Jun 14" oval handstamp, placed in mails by Express Company with bold blue "Saint Joseph, Mo./Jun. 23, 1860" cds, hint of soiling & flap tear, Very Fine and rare, ex-Barkhausen (Sold in 1955 for $260). Estimate $500 - 750.
The undated handstamp company oval was applied prior to sale and unused entires were sold to Miners in the mountains along the C.O.C.P.P. route. This marking is usually found on reverse of covers.
Realized: $1,050
Lot
399
Hinckley & Co.'s Express/Denver City. Cds tying 1857 3¢ dull red on 1860 cover to Ohio, cover handed over to The Central Overland and California & Pikes Peak Express Company for transmission to St. Joseph, Mo. where the cover was placed in the mails, cover struck with Central Overland oval of Denver City, K.T. and adhesive tied by green "Saint Joseph, Mo." cds, some minor edge wear & soiling, otherwise Very Fine, a nice conjunctive usage with Hinckley's carrying the cover from the Mines to Denver and then by C.O.C.P.P. to St. Joseph. Estimate $200 - 300.
Realized: $425
Lot
400
Jones & Russell's Pike's Peak Express Co./Denver City (Kansas Territory, now Colorado) Apr 12, 1860. Black circle handstamp (posthumous COC & PPE use) on cover to Saint Louis, Missouri, entered the mails with "Leavenworth City, K.T., Apr 20, 1860" cds tying 1857 3¢ dull red two singles paying the double rate, slightly reduced at left and right, a few small stains and edge nicks, top backflap mostly missing, Fine. Estimate $200 - 300.
This cover was sent after the freighting partnership of Russell, Majors, and Waddell had assumed ownership of Jones & Russell's stage line and express company, which was on October 28, 1859. The company was re-christened the Central Overland California & Pike's Peak Express Company (COC&PPE) on November 19, 1859. The COC&PPE was chartered in Kansas Territory on February 13, 1860.
Realized: $270
Lot
401
Jones & Russell's Pike's Peak Express Co./Denver City (Kansas Territory, now Colorado) Oct 27, 1859. Black circle handstamp on cover to Saint Louis, Missouri, entered the mails with "Leavenworth City, K.T., Nov 6, 1859" large cds tying 1857 3¢ dull red, repaired at top just affecting the company handstamp, top backflap mostly missing, Fine. Estimate $150 - 200.
This cover was sent the day before the freighting partnership of Russell, Majors, and Waddell assumed ownership of Jones & Russell's stage line and express company.
Realized: $230
Lot
402
Wells Fargo & Co./Denver City Col. (Colorado Territory) May 17, 1867. Blue double oval handstamp (Leutzinger type 17-8) on 1864 3¢ pink entire with Holladay Overland Mail and Express Company printed frank (posthumous Wells Fargo use) to Saint Joseph, Missouri, entered the mails with "Salina, Kan., May 22" cds and duplexed target, thus carried from Denver by stage on the Smoky Hill Route to the Union Pacific Eastern Division (later Kansas Pacific) railroad terminus at Salina, edge tear at top, mended slit into the address at bottom, F.-V.F., a rare Wells Fargo usage, with photocopy of an 1867 Wells Fargo map showing the route. Estimate $500 - 750.
The Smoky Hill Route was pioneered in 1864 by Butterfield's Overland Despatch, a freighting and forwarding venture that ran between Denver and Leavenworth, Kansas. Butterfield's Despatch was acquired by the Holladay Overland Mail and Express Company in March of 1866. The United States Express Company also operated on the Smoky Hill Route.
Wells Fargo and Holladay along with the Overland Mail Company, which was controlled but not yet legally owned by Wells Fargo, were merged in a "Grand Consolidation" that was effective November 1, 1866. The new corporation retained the Wells Fargo name. The new Wells Fargo was a transportation enterprise as much as an express and banking business. As such, the new Wells Fargo was responsible for the entire Central Overland Route, which they began advertising as the "Great Overland Mail Route" with "Wells, Fargo & Co. Sole Proprietors." The United States Express Company, as allies of Wells Fargo, took charge of the Smoky Hill Route.
An odd thing about Wells Fargo's "Great Overland Mail Route" was that it was disappearing incrementally as a consequence of the construction of the first transcontinental railroad. On the eastern end, the Union Pacific Western Division reached Julesburgh, Colorado Territory, in June of 1867. Through service between Cheyenne City, Dakota Territory (soon to be Wyoming Territory), and Omaha, Nebraska, was initiated in November of 1867. In the interim, Indian attacks and railroad breakdowns east of Omaha led Wells Fargo to occasionally send express on the United States Express Company's Smoky Hill Route as an alternative to the easternmost portion of their own Central Overland Route.
Realized: $850