Jim Bridger

Trailblazer of the American West

By: Jerry Enzler

Narrated by: Danny Campbell

Even among iconic frontiersmen like John C. Fremont, Kit Carson, and Jedediah Smith, Jim Bridger stands out. A mountain man of the American West, straddling the fur trade era and the age of exploration, he lived the life legends are made of. Here, in a biography that finally gives this outsize character his due, Jerry Enzler takes this frontiersman's full measure for the first time—and tells a story that would do Jim Bridger proud.

Born in 1804 and orphaned at thirteen, Bridger made his first western foray in 1822, traveling up the Missouri River with Mike Fink and a hundred enterprising young men to trap beaver. At twenty he "discovered" the Great Salt Lake. In the following years, he led trapping brigades into Blackfeet territory; guided expeditions of Smithsonian scientists, topographical engineers, and army leaders; and, though he could neither read nor write, mapped the tribal boundaries for the Great Indian Treaty of 1851. Enzler charts Bridger's path from the fort he built on the Oregon Trail to the route he blazed for Montana gold miners to avert war with Red Cloud and his Lakota coalition.

Tapping sources uncovered in the six decades since the last documented Bridger biography, Enzler's book fully conveys the drama and details of the larger-than-life history of the "King of the Mountain Men."

©2021 Jerome Enzler (P)2023 Tantor

Real History

I have been waiting for a good Bridger Biography and this did not disappoint. If you are a fan of Western / Mountain Man history, this will quickly become a cornerstone of your collection.

Fan since 3rd Grade

Fan since 3rd Grade when i helped build a corrugated board Fort Bridger in our classroom. This was a well researched thesis on Bridger.

Explains the world Jim Bridger lived in!

Very through and let’s you imagine being with him and experiencing the west before it was changed forever.

Amazing book! 

This is an insightful book into the life of a man who does not get much notoriety. Jim, Bridger certainly was a Hardy character! If you enjoy the history of the old West, this book Hass to be at the top of your list! The narration was pleasant and enjoyable to listen to. Well written! 

The unbelievable tales and truth

some areas were repetitive, but not a distraction or taken away from the story.
All was well done

Of the detail, while falling the root of Jim through his time in the west

Have to write this the best book written on the 1800s in the western mountains

The detailed landscapes

Excellent listen. Cool history to the places I know described in this book namely the small town close to my home named fort bridger, the mountains that are my playground, the Bridger national forest and the rivers I fish especially the hams fork.

Amazing Explorer

Fascinating story about a man who travelled and explored the unmapped areas west of the Mississippi. He forged pathways for others to follow, and he did it all by foot or horseback. An excellent read!

Great History But the Writing

Great history but written in a way that makes it difficult to follow as there is so much. The narrator's voice is good for the subject matter but the pace is too rapid. Jim Bridger was a tip scout but the writing might have martyred him a bit too much.

I like the narrator he had the voice of mountain man

Looks like the author tried hard to get the truth for many legends about Jim Bridger