William G. Fargo - Grave of a Famous Person on Waymarking.com

William Fargo was born near Syracuse, NY and lived in a poor household as a child. He often had to support himself throughout his teenage years and had little schooling. By the age of 23, he became a freight agent for the Auburn & Syracuse railway company and a year later, an express messenger between Buffalo and Albany.

In 1850, William Fargo joined Henry Wells to form the American Express Company in Buffalo, NY. It was a merger of the express mail companies owned by Henry Wells (Wells & Company), William Fargo (Livingston, Fargo & Company), and John Butterfield (Butterfield, Wasson & Company). The company had a near monopoly on express shipments of goods, services, and money throughout New York State due in part to the US Postal Service being expensive, unreliable, and slow.

By 1852, Wells and Fargo formed Wells, Fargo, & Co. to conduct an express business between New York and San Francisco. This company pretty much held a monopoly on this express route as well. In 1860 the company gained operations of the Overland Mail Company who operated the western portion of the Pony Express.

Today, neither company are involved in the movement of goods. However, both still deal with money. Wells Fargo operates a chain of nearly 6000 bank branches and American Express is one of the leading credit card companies.

Fargo and his family are buried in section AA of Forest Lawn Cemetery.

Description: See long description. Date of birth: 05/20/1818 Date of death: 08/03/1881 Area of notoriety: Historical Figure Marker Type: Monument Setting: Outdoor Visiting Hours/Restrictions: 8AM-7PM Fee required?: No Web site: Not listed

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