Henry Styles Bridges was born Sept. 9, 1898 in West Pembroke, Maine about 20 miles from the Canadian border. He was a graduate of the University of Maine and then Dartmouth College. He was an instructor after college at Sanderson Academy in Ashfield, Massachusetts and then became part of the extension staff of the University of New Hampshire in the same position. He was called Styles Bridges in his Senatorial career that spanned from 1937-1961 because Harry Bridges was a union leader and he did not want to be confused with the ardent leftist. Bridges was the leader of the Conservative wing of the Republican party. Previously he was governor of New Hampshire from 1934-1936. He supported Wendell Willkie in his bid against FDR in 1940.
He was a controversial figure for criticizing Roosevelt’s appointment of Justice Hugo Black, the whole New Deal and the Yalta accord that gave most of the Middle East and Asia to the Soviet Union, Dean Acheson’s foreign policy, that led to the U.S. entry (1950) into the Korean War and the President’s seizure of steel mills during an industry-wide strike in 1952. He applauded JFK as the first “patriotic American” president supported by the Democratic Party in his lifetime, but that he was naive concerning the Russians.
from the little town of West Pembroke
Senator Bridges died on Nov. 26, 1961 in Concord, N.H after complications from a heart attack on September 21 1961. He died in his sleep and was 63 years old. His first wife Sally Clements died in 1938 with whom he had three sons and remarried in 1944 Doloris Thauwald.
Marc Jones has Senator Bridges’ birth time at 10:39 AM; Astro.com has 10:30 so we are going with Jones’s stated time but we do think a few minutes earlier works better. Still we are not changing the chart. This time makes his a southern hemisphere bowl with a little lip of Saturn in the first house to distill the resources he has at hand through the preponderance in the 12th house planets of government.
His Ascendant is 18.42 Scorpio or “fasting pilgrims outside the castles of the king” per the Hyperion Symbols. McClung writes that his symbol is the application of the individual to authority for a sympathetic response. That works well as Jones says that Saturn’s keyword is “sympathy” and here found in Sagittarius suggests that his call was the call for an informed public on the dangers of socialism, fascism and its international brother communism.
With Saturn opposite Pluto in Gemini, Bridges agreed with the football adage that the best offense was a strong defense and felt that the overreaching of a US republic was a mistake. His part of fortune at 08 Virgo conjunct the midheaven is at another defensive post and the point focus of the Saturn – Pluto opposition showing his desire for an America that was “anonymous in foreign countries,” and thus beckoning to an American First nation.
The Mars in the eighth, its essential lord, conjunct the Moon in its native Cancer give the double connotation of the mother of his children would die early and that his mother would outlive him. Jupiter in Libra in the 11th suggests he enjoyed the competitive nature – trine Pluto – of politics and being a Conservative leader – sextile Saturn.
Presidents send regrets
His mother Mrs. Earl Bridges and his sister Doris of West Pembroke, Maine as well as his second wife and children survived him. JFK magnanimously applauded Senator Bridges in an eulogy from Hyannis Port nonetheless saying
“The nation will mourn the loss of Senator Bridges, a great patriot who devoted his life to the continual strength of country. He was a distinguished advocate of his state, his region and his nation. Mrs. Kennedy and I extend our deepest sympathy to his widow.”
Former presidents Ike and Truman did likewise.
