Thomas Edison Bridges
Thomas Edison Bridges was born on February 19, 1916 in Trigg County, Kentucky. He was the third of six children born to Garland Drew Bridges and Annie Lurline Thomas Bridges. Garland was a farmer in Kentucky and later worked as a hospital employee after moving to Arizona. Both he and Annie were natives of Trigg County. Edison was a descendant of both Drewry Bridges and Starkie Thomas.
Edison's siblings were Troy Hughie Bridges, born in 1910 and married Isabel Mary Wilde and later married Dorothy May Kerr; Peachie Shirley Bridges, born in 1913 and married Benjamin Franklin Futrell and later married T. J. Owens; Garland Drew Bridges, Jr., born in 1924 and married Johnnye Faye Buth; Anna Louise Bridges, born in 1926 and married Edward Thomas Foose; and Willa Dale Bridges, born in 1929 and married John Wesley Mathis and later married Arliss Worley.
Edison grew up in Trigg County and when he was eighteen years old, in May of 1934, he enlisted in the U.S. Navy at the Navy Recruiting Station in Nashville, Tennessee. He was then transferred to the Naval Training Station in Norfolk, Virginia where he received twelve weeks of recruit training. After two years in the Navy, Edison was discharged and he joined the Merchant Marines and served on commercial ships. Edison's career ultimately led him to serve as an engineering officer in the Merchant Marines. He served in the Merchant Marines until his retirement in 1976.
After World War II, Edison almost lost his life after being shipwrecked in Arctic waters. During the war when Russia and Germany were involved in many battles, and Edison was serving with the Merchant Marines, his ships were involved in carrying supplies to the hottest European spots including the Russian city of Murmansk. Murmansk is, one of the largest cities north of the Arctic Circle and nicknamed the “Gateway to the Arctic.” Edison’s fleet was later honored by the Soviet government for their services to Russia. Edison was shipwrecked on three earlier ill-fated voyages and was successfully rescued.
Following the war on February 5, 1946, Edison who had been serving at sea for more than a year when he was among seventeen survivors of the sixty-man crew of the American liberty ship, SS William H. Webb, sank in the Arctic waters of the Barents Sea after a voyage to the city of Murmansk. Two lives were known to be lost at the time with Edison being one of the fortunate survivors. A Russian patrol vessel rescued the seventeen men from the cold Arctic waters and later transferred them to Greenock, Scotland. The 7,176-ton ship which was built in Baltimore in 1943 broke into two sections and quickly sank in the cold Arctic waters. The lifeboats got away from the wreck, two of them being picked up soon afterward by the Russians. The third whose occupants included the skipper W. R. Schlining of Baltimore was swamped in the surf of an uninhabited island. "We only managed to scramble ashore" Schlining said “Snow was several feet deep on the Island and we plowed through this to an old hut We knew we could not live long there without food and we decided to set the hut on fire. We knew it would put some heat into us and hoped the blaze would be seen by the Russians" Schlining and his companions were rescued after spending 24 hours on the island The captain said some of the men were taken to a Murmansk hospital for emergency treatment.
In 1947, Edison married Mary Henrietta “Dolly” Armstrong. Dolly was born on July 22, 1923 in Trigg County. She was the daughter of John Starkey Armstrong and Nora Pearl Sumner Armstrong. Both John Starkey and Nora Pearl were natives of Trigg County. Dolly worked as a nurse.
Edison and Dolly were the parents of one daughter, Gretchen Bridges, born in 1949 and married Stanley C. Kronenberger. Gretchen was adopted by Dolly’s second husband and was known as Gretchen Green.
Edison and Dolly were divorced and in 1972 Edison married his second wife, Caroline Fox Harned. Caroline was born on June 13, 1924 in Binghamton Broome, New York . She was the daughter of John Fox and Anna Kozup Fox who were both natives of Poland. Thomas and Caroline had no children. Caroline worked at the Norfolk Naval Supply Center for over 25 years.
Edison died on January 3, 1993 at the age of 76 in the Dupaul Hospital in Norfolk, Virginia. He was buried in the Lawrence Cemetery in Trigg County, Kentucky. His wife, Caroline, died on June 27, 1999 at the age of 75 in Virginia Beach, Virginia. She was buried in the Forest Lawn Cemetery in Norfolk, Virginia.
Edison tombstone
Caroline tombstone
LINEAGE: (Thomas Edison Bridges was the son of Garland Drew and Annie Lurline Thomas Bridges. Garland was the twelfth child of Drewry and Nannie Gresham Bridges. Drewry was the fourth child of William and Mary Thomas Bridges. William was the fourth child of Drury and Charity Cohoon Bridges. Annie Lurline was the fifth child of Wesley Gunn and Eliza L. Henderson Thomas. Wesley was the sixth child of Stanley and Emily Ann Light Thomas. Stanley was the second child of Starkie and Mary Bridges Thomas. Starkie was the fourth child of James and Mary Standley Thomas.)
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