George Monroe
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George Frazier Monroe(c.1844-1886) was a stagecoach driver for thePony Express.His passengers included presidents and a socialite.
Monroe was born inGeorgiac.1844 to Louis Augustus Monroe, a barber, and Mary, a free woman fromOhio.He was schooled inWashington, D.C.,under the tutelage of his uncle until the age of eleven when he moved toMariposa, California.He worked as a tour guide inYosemiteat a resort hotel owned byHenry D. Washburncalled the Big Tree Station, and eventually became a stagecoach driver once the hotel could be reached by road.
Monroe drove a route on thePony ExpressbetweenMerced, California,andMariposa, California,from 1870 to 1886. His employerHenry D. Washburnreserved Monroe as one of his most distinguished drivers and drove severalU.S. PresidentsincludingUlysses S. Grant,Rutherford B. Hayes,andJames A. Garfield,as well as socialiteLillie Langtry.
After incurring an injury as a passenger helping to stop a runaway coach, Monroe died on November 22, 1886, at the age of 42.
Legacy
[edit]Fort Monroe atYosemite National Parkwas named in his honor.