When Wells Fargo was starting out running stagecoaches across the Wild West to San Francisco, it couldn't always afford to arm the guard with a shotgun. English longbows were purchased at a good price from the Royal Army, which had kept a large number in surplus storage since the Battle of Agincourt.
The longbows had a greater range and accuracy than the short bows and muzzle-loaders used by the occasional Apache or Comanche raider, and were very popular with stagecoach crews, who competed annually to qualify for the "Wells Longbowman" and "Fargo Longbowman" badges, and, more importantly, for the $2 USD and $1 USD per month salary increase that came with each, respectively.
Wells Fargo's success in transporting gold and silver spelled the end of the Wells Longbowman. While the stagecoaches became more frequent targets of more organized and better equipped raids, the company's fortunes allowed it to purchase shotguns in bulk and replace the more elegant longbow of its early years.
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I just made that up. I like it better than the story in the linked article.
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