Bridger family of Virginia

The Bridger family of Virginia is notable to American history. Relevant figures include Joseph Bridger and Jim Bridger, as well as some less-known contributors to American colonial, pioneer, and Civil War history.{{cite book |authorlink=David Hackett Fischer |first=David Hackett |last=Fischer |title=Albion's Seed: Four British Folkways in America |location=New York |publisher=Oxford University Press |year=1989 |pages=633–639 |isbn= 978-0-19-506905-1}}

Joseph Bridger

The foremost progenitor of this family was General Joseph Bridger of Isle of Wight County, Virginia.{{Cite web | url=http://www.tk-jk.net/Bridgers/Shaggy/fog0000000027.html |title = Chapter 1, Part 2 - "The Tidewater Hearth" - John D. Bridgers M.D}} Originally from Gloucester, England, he served, according to some sources, as a co-acting Colonial Governor of Virginia in 1684 and 1685.{{Cite web |url=http://www.bridgerfamilyassn.org/BOOK/bridger.pdf# |title=Archived copy |access-date=2016-06-22 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160807175037/http://www.bridgerfamilyassn.org/BOOK/bridger.pdf# |archive-date=2016-08-07 |url-status=dead }}

Jim Bridger

The most well-known member of the Bridger family is Jim Bridger, mountain man, and explorer of the American Northwest (primarily Montana and Wyoming). Many places are named for him, such as the Bridger Mountains of Montana and the Bridger Mountains of Wyoming, as well as the Bridger-Teton National Forest and Bridger Wilderness, both in western Wyoming.

Others

The Bridger family also includes several other members of historical relevance. James and John Bridger, for whom Bridger Mountain (a ridge in West Virginia) was named, were pioneer settlers of Pocahontas County, West Virginia.{{cite web |url=http://archiver.rootsweb.ancestry.com/th/read/BRIDGER/2003-10/1067493490 |title=RootsWeb: BRIDGER-L James Bridger of Pocahontas County Virginia |website=archiver.rootsweb.ancestry.com |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160810180833/http://archiver.rootsweb.ancestry.com/th/read/BRIDGER/2003-10/1067493490 |archive-date=2016-08-10}} {{cite book|last=Kenny|first=Hamill|title=West Virginia Place Names: Their Origin and Meaning, Including the Nomenclature of the Streams and Mountains|url=http://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=mdp.39015009099824;view=1up;seq=158|year=1945|publisher=The Place Name Press |location=Piedmont, WV|page=130}}

Robert Rufus Bridgers, a member of the North Carolina legislature, represented the state in the First and Second Confederate Congress. "Bridger's Artillery" was among the Confederate companies of Hedrick's Brigade, which helped defend Fort Anderson in February 1865, as part of the Battle of Wilmington.{{Cite web |url=http://www.nchistoricsites.org/fisher/order-battle-confed.htm |title=NC Historic Sites - Fort Fisher - Organization of Confederate Forces |access-date=2016-06-23 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160624025319/http://www.nchistoricsites.org/fisher/order-battle-confed.htm |archive-date=2016-06-24 |url-status=dead }} In addition, William Bridgers, of Austin, Texas, was a significant photographer of the Civil War era.{{Cite web | url=https://tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/kjp04 |title = PHOTOGRAPHY IN CIVIL WAR TEXAS | the Handbook of Texas Online| Texas State Historical Association (TSHA)|date = 24 February 2011}}

Luther B. Bridgers (1884–1948), an American songwriter and Methodist minister, was noted for his evangelism.{{citation needed|date=June 2023}}

References

Category:Bridger family

Category:Families from Virginia

Category:American families of English ancestry

Bridger family of Virginia

Joseph Bridger

Jim Bridger

Others

See also

Further reading

References