By BRENT MARTIN
St. Joseph Post
Tourists to St. Joseph often come to see where the Pony Express started, visiting the Patee House and the Pony Express National Museum.
On Tuesday, the Pony Express Museum hosted a special visitor.
Gov. Mike Parson paid a visit as part of his Bicentennial Tour of Missouri, stating it’s a privilege to tour the state and get first-hand presentations of some of its history.
“It’s pretty neat to be able to go across the state of Missouri and celebrate 200 years here in our state, just knowing how much St. Joe, what their part has played in those 200 years and today we’re here talking about the Pony Express that we all as kids growing up always knew about the Pony Express and what it really meant to our nation,” Parson told reporters after his tour.
Parson arrived in St. Joseph after touring the J.C. Penny Museum in Hamilton, the birthplace of the retail giant.
Parson points out Missouri is known of its famous natives, such as Mark Twain, Walter Cronkite, and Gen. John Pershing, but also for its famous animals, such as Old Drum and Jim the Wonder Dog.
That’s the point the governor attempts to get across in this tour. It’s not just informative. It’s not just history. It’s fun to learn about Missouri, its 200 years of statehood, and even the history before it officially became the 24th state on August 10th of 1821.
Parson says he’s learned things about Missouri on this tour he didn’t know.
“Most certainly,” Parson responded. “We were just walking through the museum here just a little bit ago, there was a young man, Mr. Fisher, was actually one of the early Pony Express riders and you think, okay, so where does his family tree go and where does it end?”
The governor refers to William “Billy” Fisher, the great grandfather of NASA mission specialist William Fisher II who took a collection of Pony Express memorabilia up in space on the space shuttle Discovery.
“So, you think of what started with a young man riding a horse, setting the stage for our country, and then all of the sudden you have somebody in his family becomes an astronaut,” Parson said. “One of the things you really appreciate going around to these Missouri towns across the state, all of us, you start thinking back to your family tree a little bit. You start thinking about your parents and your grandparents and all the things that have occurred in our state over history and the 200 years we’re celebrating and you just realize how remarkable things were and what people went through to be where we’re at today.”
Parson says Missourians have much to celebrate on its 200th birthday.
“I think that’s the pride you have of being a Missourian,” Parson stated. “I know when I did my two tours of duty in the Army and I stepped off on the tarmac in Springfield, I said I would never leave this state again, simply because I love the people of this state and I love this state. And this is just one of the fine examples, you get to showcase who we are and I really do believe we’re the heart and soul of this country right here in Missouri.”
