Amazon Link: https://amzn.to/3EGEBJv
Jim Bridger was one of the original trailblazers of the west. He lived from 1804-1881 and his life intersected with many key elements, individuals, and groups in US history.
The book started slow and I almost didn’t continue listening to it, but I’m glad I did.
After detailing as much as could be discovered about Bridger’s origins, the book seemed to settle into a cycle of supply runs and lists of beaver pelts. For a few chapters there didn’t seem to be much of a story to tell.
But that changed.
Eventually, I was amazed by the life of a man who seems to be relatively unknown, but was so famous and appreciated at one point that it was almost his face carved into Mount Rushmore and not US presidents.
He never learned to read or write well, but he was an extremally intelligent man. He had an almost photographic memory of the geography and terrain of the places he explored; learned several Native American languages; negotiated often between settlers and indigenous peoples; and knew and lived off the land in a way few could.
When listened to he could guide settlers through the harshest terrains; when ignored there were sometimes tragic results.
He wasn’t a good role model in many ways, but he was the type of man that opened up the west for others to follow.
[I listened to the audio book and had to put it on 1.75x speed. For some reason the narrator decided to read the book in a painfully slow way. So, keep that in mind if you get the audio version.]