John Biddle

Major General John Biddle (February 2, 1859 – January 18, 1936) was a career United States Army officer who became superintendent of the United States Military Academy. Early life Biddle was born in Detroit, Michigan. His father was William Shepard Biddle (1830–1902) and mother was Susan Dayton Ogden (1831–1878). His Biddle family included many political and military leaders, including grandfather John Biddle (1792–1859) and great-grandfather Charles Biddle (1745–1821). His maternal great-grandfather, Aaron Ogden, served as governor of New Jersey. His maternal grandfather, Elias B. D. Ogden, served as associate justice of the New Jersey Supreme Court. His siblings were Dr. Andrew P. Biddle, First Lieutenant William S. Biddle Jr. and Eliza (Lily) Biddle, wife of Episcopal Bishop G. Mott Williams. Biddle was raised outside the United States until he was a teenager, and he attended schools in Geneva and Heidelberg. He then attended the University of Michigan for a year, where he became a member of Delta Kappa Epsilon fraternity, but left to attend the United States Military Academy. He graduated in 1881, ranked second of 53. His high class ranking earned him a second lieutenant's commission in the first choice of most top graduates, the Corps of Engineers.