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Henry Wells and William G. Fargo, who founded American Express along with John Butterfield, formed Wells Fargo & Company in 1852 to provide "express" and banking services to California, which was growing rapidly due to the California Gold Rush.
The beginning of an industry. In 1841, William Harnden, the nation’s first expressman, hired Wells to find a solution for people needing delivery service between New York City and Albany, New York. At the time, many people preferred to hire a courier instead of sending letters by the U.S. Postal Service when things needed to arrive quickly.
Secret codes that kept transactions safe. In the 1800s, the telegraph allowed Wells Fargo to help customers transfer money securely. To minimize risk, the company used a system of encryption with secret codes. Read more.
Key Dates: 1852: Henry Wells and William G. Fargo form Wells, Fargo & Company to provide express and banking services to California. 1860: Wells Fargo gains control of Overland Mail Company, leading to operation of the western portion of the Pony Express.
Wells, founder of Wells and Company, and Fargo, a partner in Livingston, Fargo, and Company, and mayor of Buffalo, New York, from 1862 to 1863 and again from 1864 to 1865, were major figures in the young and fiercely competitive express industry.
Founded in 1852, Wells, Fargo transported gold between the west and east coasts in the wake of the California gold rush. By 1866 it had gained control of almost all stagecoach business in the West. In 1905 its banking operations were separated from its express operations.
Wells Fargo & Company, established in 1852 and headquartered in San Fran- cisco, is one of the largest financial institutions in the United States. Wells Fargo Bank, its principal subsidiary, is the third largest bank in California and the eleventh largest. nationwide. The company also has subsidiaries engaged in mortgage banking, com-
