County of tombstone: St. Louis Independent City
Location of tombstone: Mausoleum & Clover (inside); W. Florissant Ave., St. Louis
Built: 1875
Architect: Unknown
Style: Egyptian Sarcophagus
"35. Hudson E. Bridge
Architect: Unknown
Built: c. 1875
Marble. Sarcophagus on pedestal. Acanthus leaf “feet” support
sarcophagus, embellished with human faces above leaves (angels
and pharaohs)" ~ NRHP Nomination Form
"Moving from wood to stone, Hudson Bridge’s monument, a striking sarcophagus that sits high on a hill overlooking Broadway, reveals the past orientation of the cemetery. Originally, Broadway was known as Bellefontaine Road in the city (it’s still called that in North County), and since the front entrance to the cemetery was located on that road, it gave its named to Bellefontaine Cemetery. Bridge’s monument now seems like an almost obscure location, unless one considers that it once held one of the most prominent locations in the cemetery looking down on the former front entrance drive. Bridge pioneered local manufacturing, especially stoves, in St. Louis, moving the city’s economy away from simply providing raw materials for eastern factories to producing finished products in the Gateway City." ~ St. Louis, [Magazine], by Chris Naffziger, October 2015
"Hudson Erastus Bridge was born on 17 May 1810 in Walpole, Cheshire County, New Hampshire. He died on 25 February 1875 in Carondelet, St. Louis County, Missouri. He was the son of Joseph Bridge and Francis “Fanny” Wightman of Massachusetts and New Hampshire.When he was twenty-one, Hudson left his parents’ home and began extended travels throughout the country, including New York, Ohio, Michigan, Tennessee, Illinois, and Missouri. While in Illinois, he began the manufacture of plows, which taught him iron manufacturing. Coming to St. Louis in 1838, he established a foundry and, in time, determined to manufacture stoves, he started the Empire Stove Works.
"Hudson was a founder of Washington University in St. Louis and the main conference room in Brookings Hall at Washington University in St. Louis is named in his honor. Hudson was also a trustee for Bellefontaine Cemetery from 1851 until his death in 1875. He was president of the association for the years 1862 and 1863. He was also a director and twice president of the Mercantile Library Association" ~ St. Louis Genealogical Society