Bridge House, St George’s
| Bridge House | |
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| Location: | 32°22’54"N, 64°40’34"W |
| Address: | 1 Bridge Road |
| Built c 1700 | |
| Information | |
| Website: | thebridgehousegallery.com |
Bridge House stands at 1 Bridge Road (behind King's Square) in St George's, Bermuda's old capital. The house of today is a mansion built around 1700 mansion, which makes it one of the earliest houses in the area. The plot where it stands was once near a bridge across a creek from the sea to a marsh.
The house seen today replaced an older house; a timber-framed house built by one of Bermuda's early planters, Roger Bailey, whose father arrived in Bermuda before 1623. Roger was also a shoemaker.
The present house was once the home of Benjamin Bennett, Governor of Bermuda, in the early 18th century. Later it was the home of the Hon. Bridger Goodrich and his wife Elizabeth: Goodrich was born in the Thirteen Colonies and remained a Loyalist during the American Revolutionary War. He owned a fleet of privateering vessels, built in Bermuda, and bought Bridge House from the cash and prizes he amassed from capturing rebel ships during the Revolutionary War, after his American home and lands were confiscated by their local authorities. Goodrich's ships blockaded Chesapeake Bay, much to the consternation of Thomas Jefferson and others. Goodrich was appointed to the local Legislature. Later, the house ownership passed from Bridger Goodrich to Edward Goodrich.
After a series of owners, the house was bought by the Bermuda National Trust. An apartment in the house is available to let, the Bridge House Apartment also has an office and artist's studio.
References
- Hartley, Nick: 'The Prince of Privateers. Bridger Goodrich and his Family in America, Bermuda and Britain 1775-1825' (2012)