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By 1900 there were four major express companies. As express services matured into an industry, the tasks of stage-coach driver were divided among specialties, such as driver, expressman, agent, clerk, and others, rendering them outmoded. Many of the stage-coach drivers transitioned into the express
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In one incident, an expressman in a reserved car was shot in the head three times and robbed by a man pretending to be another expressman. He survived, and later aided in the prosecution of his attacker. On some routes, serial robberies were a serious concern. The expressmen would sometimes be
94:. It served a vital role in enabling companies to do business at regional and national levels. The expressman served not only as a courier, but as a highly ethical agent of currency, documents and other high-value items, and was considered a highly valuable employee.
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For decades stagecoach drivers and baggage-wagoners performed many of the tasks that would be later formalized under the title expressman. The first express companies, which developed in the early 19th century, contracted with stagecoach lines to carry their goods.
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Federal postal workers and eventually parcel workers took over the management of US mail and packages on trains. At times railroads have used special freight conductors, to ride with trains to ensure the care and security of special cargo.
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The inherent danger in their job led some to arm themselves. On major routes whole passenger cars were reserved for the expressmen, mainly for their security, as these agents would sit away from passengers as much as possible.
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The expressman as an occupation in the United States continued until
President Woodrow Wilson's government nationalized the railroads on December 26, 1917, after the United States entered World War I. The
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With the expansion of the railroads, express companies shifted to use that faster form of transportation. On the railroads, the men who later were called expressmen were initially referred to as
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line, thus bringing the role of expressman with it. Within a decade, express routes had been extended to most principal cities on the
European continent.
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The success of express shipping in the United States was quickly adopted by Great
Britain and Europe. Harnden & Co. established the
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During the late 19th and early 20th centuries, an expressman was someone whose responsibility it was to ensure the safe delivery of
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as they were responsible for managing all or part of the express rail car. The title
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industry. Some became expressmen; some became agents, managers, and company owners.
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designs. The railroads were returned to private owners in 1920, after the war.
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accompanied by armed men for additional security, and some enlisted the
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History of the
Express Companies and the Origin of American Railroads.
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featured expressmen in his short tale, "The
Invalid's Story."
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introduced changes to support the war effort. It standardized
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was adopted later, as the specialty became more recognized.
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The express industry came about with the onset of the
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86:Role of expressman in the United States
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138:United States Railroad Administration
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50:". This job included guarding the
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194:The Expressman and the Detective.
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16:Person responsible for a cargo
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209:Lee & Shepard Publishers.
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156:Representation in other media
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196:W. B. KEEN, COOKE & CO.
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207:Waifs from the Way-Bills.
131:20th century and decline
205:Tucker, T.W. (1891).
192:Pinkerton, A (1874).
92:Industrial Revolution
226:Obsolete occupations
115:Expressmen in Europe
231:Railway occupations
179:Lovett, A. (1858).
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146:steam locomotive
109:Pinkerton Agency
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220:Categories
167:References
161:Mark Twain
80:expressman
25:expressmen
21:expressman
121:Liverpool
44:railroad
40:currency
98:Dangers
62:Origins
56:outlaws
125:Paris
29:cargo
23:(pl.
144:and
52:safe
36:gold
123:to
38:or
19:An
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