William Lewis Bridges was born August 29, 1842 in South Carolina. His parents appear to be Jonathan Bridges and Mary Hulda McDonald. The family migrated from South Carolina to western Murray County, Georgia (which later became Whitfield County) around 1845.

William enlisted in Company D, 60th Georgia Infantry Regiment (the Whitfield Volunteers) on September 19, 1861. Based on available records, it appears he served for the duration of the war.
William married Mary E Lanham on February 3, 1867 in Whitfield County, Georgia. Their son Charles William Bridges was born December 6, 1867. Mary died of breast cancer on June 6, 1869.
William married Harriet Ann "Hattie" Springfield on January 2, 1870. In 1871, the family decided to move to Texas, traveling by covered wagon. They had only made it to Alabama, when one of the horses in their team died. They decided to stay in Alabama until they could secure another one. While in Alabama, Hattie gave birth to Hugh Springfield Bridges on June 2, 1871. William went to work for a railroad to raise money for a new horse, but the railroad went bankrupt before he was ever paid so they returned to Georgia near their relatives.

While in Georgia, the following eleven children were born:
Little Sister Bridges 26 Aug 1872
John Franklin Bridges 11 Sep 1873
Emma Levanna Bridges 8 Sep 1874
Mary Daisy Bridges 2 May 1876
Mattie Bell Bridges 5 May 1878
Ida Jane Bridges 26 Nov 1879
James Henry "Jim" Bridges 12 Jan 1882
George Ezra Bridges 29 Oct 1883
Bessie May Bridges 18 Jan 1886
Carrie Faye Bridges 25 Oct 1887
Lucy Wright Bridges 3 May 1890

Little Sister and John Franklin died as infants. In about 1894, William, Hattie, and seven of their remaining ten children moved to Texas, settling initially on a farm in Grayson County. In 1902 William and Hattie moved to Jones County, northwest of Abilene , where they purchased land and farmed near the town of Stith.

Hattie died on January 25, 1911 near Stith. William died just three weeks later also near Stith.