George Washington Bridges (October 9, 1825 – March 16, 1873) was an American politician and a member of the United States House of Representatives for the 3rd congressional district of Tennessee from 1861 to 1863. A Southern Unionist, he was arrested and jailed by Confederate authorities during the first few months of the Civil War in 1861. Though he eventually escaped, he did not take his seat in Congress until February 25, 1863, a few days before his term expired. Following his congressional term, Bridges joined the Union Army with the rank of lieutenant-colonel, and commanded the 10th Tennessee Cavalry from August 1863 to November 1864. After the war, Bridges served as a state circuit court judge. Early life Most contemporary biographies state that Bridges was born in Charleston, Tennessee, though in a letter to congressional biographer Charles Lanman, he stated he was born in McMinn County, Tennessee, and raised in McMinn's county seat, Athens, where he would live and work for most his life. He attended East Tennessee University (the forerunner of the University of Tennessee) in Knoxville, studied law, and was admitted to the bar in 1848. By March 1849, he had commenced practice in Athens, specializing in claims collection. In late 1849, the Tennessee state legislature appointed Bridges district attorney general for the state's third circuit. The legislature amended the state constitution in the early 1850s to require district attorneys to be selected by popular vote, forcing Bridges to run for reelection in 1854. In the election that year, he defeated rising Chattanooga attorney Daniel C. Trewhitt, 3,204 votes to 2,541. He remained district attorney of the 3rd circuit until 1860, when he declined to run for reelection. Bridges was an active member of the state Democratic Party throughout the 1850s. He represented McMinn County at the state Democratic Party convention in 1851, and was appointed by newly elected Democratic governor Andrew Johnson to the Board of Directors of the East Tennessee and Georgia Railroad in 1854. He also served on the board of directors for the Athens branch of the Bank of Tennessee during this period. He owned slaves. In 1859, he served as a vice president of the state Democratic Party convention. Civil War Like many of East Tennessee's pro-Union Democrats, Bridges supported the Northern Democratic candidate, Stephen Douglas, during the 1860 presidential election. He served as the Douglas elector for the state's 3rd district,