AN OCCURENCE AT OWL CREEK
BRIDGE
BY AMBROSE BIERCE
Ambrose Bierce (1842-1914) learned his craft as a
writer while traveling through the western United
States as a journalist for popular newspapers and
magazines. His experiences in the Union army during
the Civil War (he fought in both the Battle of Shiloh and
Kennesaw Mountain) left him disillusioned and critical
of most institutions of authority. This disillusionment
often took the form of satire in his work, such as The
Devil’s Dictionary, published in 1911.