Ben Ficklin

FICKLIN, BENJAMIN FRANKLIN (18271871). Ben Ficklin, Civil War blockade runner and stage operator, son of Benjamin and Ellen (Slaughter) Ficklin, was born in Albemarle County, Virginia, on December 18, 1827. He entered Virginia Military Institute on July 7, 1845, and even though he was temporarily kicked out for breaking rules and playing pranks, he graduated on July 4, 1849, after stopping to serve in the Mexican War as a corporal in 184647. He subsequently taught school for a time and then began operating stage lines. In 1857, under the command of Albert Sidney Johnston , he traveled on an expedition to Utah to settle trouble with the Mormons . In 1859 he helped organize and became general superintendent of the Central and Overland California and Pike's Peak Express Company. In this role he became known as the originator of the Pony Express.