Shotgun messenger
In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, a shotgun messenger was a private "express messenger" and guard, especially on a stagecoach but also on a train, in charge of overseeing and guarding a valuable private shipment, such as particularly the contents of a strongbox (on a stagecoach) or safe (on a train). == History == In the American Old West, express messengers of the Wells Fargo company typically carried a short (or sawn-off) 12- or 10-gauge double-barrelled shotgun, loaded with buckshot.