| Animal protein was an important dietary supplement along the western terminus of the Pony Express route. Meat consumption in Central Nevada during the 1860s involved a complex interplay of several interconnected factors. The availability, access, and preference of wild game and domestic livestock were governed by social and spatial means generally beyond the control of those individuals who lived in this desolate region. In using these three features to investigate faunal remains from the Cold Springs and Sand Springs Pony Express sites, a great deal of information can be ascertained about the little known daily lives of the individuals who risked life and limb to ensure the safe passage of mail from east to west and back again. |
