Retired historian writes first novel at 90
Hal Bridges, 90, of Cottonwood Village has combined his love of journalism and history to write and self-publish a first novel. The novel - "Lincoln and the Single Eye" - is a tale of Abraham Lincoln, mysticism, love and murder in wartime Washington.
"It is a serious religious novel with a background of dramatic Civil War events," Bridges said.
Bridges was born and raised in the small, South Central Texas town of Luling. That's where his connection to journalism began. His grandfather James Pierce Bridges was editor of The Luling Signal, a weekly newspaper, and also president of the Texas Press Association. Hal's father, Leonard Bridges, later became editor of the newspaper, and he eventually was followed as editor by Hal's sister Kathleen.
As a boy, he was too small to play football at Luling High School. "My sport was tennis," he said. "I did win the county championship in that sport."
Bridges also earned some impressive awards by the time he graduated in 1936. He graduated valedictorian of his class, and he was selected by the local American Legion Post as the All-Around American Boy.
After high school, Bridges headed to the University of Texas where he graduated in 1940 at the top of the journalism class.
Because jobs were scarce, Bridges took a civil service exam and scored high enough to be offered a job in Washington, D.C., as a junior information assistant. His starting salary was to be $1,500 a year.
"That was a princely sum for a single person," he said. His mother bought him a new trench coat to protect her son against the damp chill in Washington. He said he was all set. Unfortunately, Hitler didn't know that.
"I never wore that coat until after World War II," he said. "I volunteered ahead of the draft."
But instead of taking advantage of Bridge's journalism education, the Army placed him in the Finance Department. After being sent to Luke Field near Phoenix, the Army placed Bridges in counter intelligence.
"They gave me the address of a seedy little restaurant in Phoenix," Bridges said. He spent one Saturday as a spy. "I did surveillance on everyone going in and out of the restaurant.
"No one came in or out," he said. "That was the end of my counter intelligence work because the next day was Pearl Harbor."
His captain recommended Bridges for Officer Candidate School. After OCS, he eventually ended up in a new department of the service, the Air Force Service Command. Although the Air Force didn't exist yet as a separate branch of the military, the new department furnished every service that combat flyers needed.
Bridges spent a total of five years in the Army during the war, with three of those overseas in Egypt and various locations in the Mediterranean. He obtained the rank of Major before leaving the Army to enroll in Columbia School of Journalism.
It was there that Bridges earned a master's in Latin American History and then a doctorate in American Social and Intellectual History. In 1950 he accepted his first teaching job at the University of Arkansas. By then, he was married and eventually had two daughters.
After three years in Arkansas, Bridges took a teaching job at the University of Colorado. He eventually became a full professor and had some success as a writer....
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"It is a serious religious novel with a background of dramatic Civil War events," Bridges said.
Bridges was born and raised in the small, South Central Texas town of Luling. That's where his connection to journalism began. His grandfather James Pierce Bridges was editor of The Luling Signal, a weekly newspaper, and also president of the Texas Press Association. Hal's father, Leonard Bridges, later became editor of the newspaper, and he eventually was followed as editor by Hal's sister Kathleen.
As a boy, he was too small to play football at Luling High School. "My sport was tennis," he said. "I did win the county championship in that sport."
Bridges also earned some impressive awards by the time he graduated in 1936. He graduated valedictorian of his class, and he was selected by the local American Legion Post as the All-Around American Boy.
After high school, Bridges headed to the University of Texas where he graduated in 1940 at the top of the journalism class.
Because jobs were scarce, Bridges took a civil service exam and scored high enough to be offered a job in Washington, D.C., as a junior information assistant. His starting salary was to be $1,500 a year.
"That was a princely sum for a single person," he said. His mother bought him a new trench coat to protect her son against the damp chill in Washington. He said he was all set. Unfortunately, Hitler didn't know that.
"I never wore that coat until after World War II," he said. "I volunteered ahead of the draft."
But instead of taking advantage of Bridge's journalism education, the Army placed him in the Finance Department. After being sent to Luke Field near Phoenix, the Army placed Bridges in counter intelligence.
"They gave me the address of a seedy little restaurant in Phoenix," Bridges said. He spent one Saturday as a spy. "I did surveillance on everyone going in and out of the restaurant.
"No one came in or out," he said. "That was the end of my counter intelligence work because the next day was Pearl Harbor."
His captain recommended Bridges for Officer Candidate School. After OCS, he eventually ended up in a new department of the service, the Air Force Service Command. Although the Air Force didn't exist yet as a separate branch of the military, the new department furnished every service that combat flyers needed.
Bridges spent a total of five years in the Army during the war, with three of those overseas in Egypt and various locations in the Mediterranean. He obtained the rank of Major before leaving the Army to enroll in Columbia School of Journalism.
It was there that Bridges earned a master's in Latin American History and then a doctorate in American Social and Intellectual History. In 1950 he accepted his first teaching job at the University of Arkansas. By then, he was married and eventually had two daughters.
After three years in Arkansas, Bridges took a teaching job at the University of Colorado. He eventually became a full professor and had some success as a writer....