HERE COME THE BRIDES

This series was aired on ABC for 2 seasons starting in 1968 and was set in the American West but it wasn’t really a Western.The Bolt Brothers: Jason, Joshua and Jeremy own a mountain where they run a logging operation, outside the small town of Seattle. But they are having a problem keeping loggers, the town has very few available women.

So Jason decides to get some women to move to Seattle. The Civil War has ended, leaving some towns depopulated of men. Jason and Jeremy go to New Bedford in New England and recruit some women.

But to get the money to bring the brides to Seattle and house them, Jason had to borrow money from Aaron Stemple, the local sawmill owner. There is a bet between the two men, if Jason doesn't get the women married off quickly, Aaron takes his land.

Candy, who is sweet on Jeremy, is the leader of the brides and Biddy is her giddy, silly sidekick. Lottie runs the local tavern and Clancy is the drunken ship's captain, who brought the brides to Seattle. In the second season, Candy's little brother and sister join her in Seattle.

CAST

ROBERT BROWN AS JASON BOLT

DAVID SOUL AS JOSHUA BOLT

BOBBY SHERMAN AS JEREMY BOLT

MARK LENARD AS AARON STEMPEL

HENRY BECKMAN AS CAPTAIN CLANCY

JOAN BLONDELL AS LOTTIE HATFIELD

BRIDGET HANLEY AS CANDY PRUITT

SUSAN TOLSKY AS BIDDIE CLOOM

ERIC CHASE AS CHRISTOPHER PRUITT

PATTI COHOON AS MOLLY PRUITT

Brides were sent from the East Coast to the West Coast after the Civil War, so that part is accurate. But, a logger wouldn't have to borrow money to get them there, he would have taken the money from other loggers. They would willing pay money for a chance at or bride. Or, if they didn't pay upfront, they would certainly have to pay their expenses once the wedding took place.

During the series there was no mention of the loggers paying for their bride's passage. Also, in the show, local men courted the brides, not just the loggers. This would start a riot, the brides were only for the loggers working for the Bolt brothers.

But all this is moot, the girls would not have made it to Seattle. As soon as they got to San Francisco, the men from the city would have immediately proposed and stolen the brides. This did happen in real life, I don't remember if the ship was going to Seattle, but there was a ship full of brides that was hijacked as soon as it hit San Francisco.

Moreover, if the brides had made it to Seattle, they all would have been married within a week. Of course this would have made for a short series. This was a nice family show, but short on historic reality.