Bridger

Bridger is the transferred use of an English surname derived from a place name. It originated from the Olde English word “brycg” and the Middle English “brigge” meaning “bridge” and was used as a surname to indicate a person who dwelled near a bridge. The first recorded spelling of the surname was rendered as “Brigger” in the 14th century in the historic southeast county of Sussex, England. The Bridger name figured prominently into American history as one of the first families of Virginia in early colonial times. The surname also carries considerable “old west” flavor in reference to Jim Bridger (1804-1881). Jim Bridger was an early pioneer of the Wild West and a true mountain man. Several places in Wyoming and Montana are named for him: Bridger Mountains, Bridger Wilderness, Bridger Trail, Fort Bridger, etc. Bridger epitomized all that was courageous and admirable of the early pioneers. Surviving the extreme conditions as he explored the Rocky Mountain range, Jim Bridger acted as a guide to fellow explorers and a mediator between Native Americans and the intruding white man. He was also the first white man to lay eyes on the Great Salt Lake and see many of the natural wonders in what is now Yellowstone National Park. He was a successful trapper and fur trader and founder of Bridger’s Pass (which is now the pathway of Interstate 80). Jim Bridger married Native-American women first from the Flathead Tribe and (after her death) a Shoshone woman; he had a total of five mixed-race children. One of the most formidable and memorable mountain men of American history, the name Bridger instantly imbues a sense of strength, vigor, courage and exploration. A true pioneering spirit, he helped “bridge” the eastern United States with the Wild West.