AMBROSE BIERCE (1842-1914), American writer, born in Ohio. He served in the Civil War and became a prominent journalist, living and working for a time in England (1872-6). He returned to San Francisco and later worked as a correspondent in Washington. Bierce is best known for his short stories, realistic, sardonic, and strongly influenced by Poe. Bierce's book "The Devil's Dictionary » was named as one of "The 100 Greatest Masterpieces of American Literature" by the American Revolution Bicentennial Administration. His story "An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge » has been described as "one of the most famous and frequently anthologized stories in American literature"; and his book "Tales of Soldiers and Civilians » (also published as In the Midst of Life) was named by the Grolier Club as one of the 100 most influential American books printed before 1900. He travelled to Mexico in 1913 and mysteriously disappeared, it is thought in the fighting of the Mexican War.