Jonathan Edwards Woodbridge (January 16, 1844 – May 21, 1935) was an American shipbuilder and

naval architect This is the top category for all articles related to architecture and its practitioners. {{Commons category, Architecture by occupation Design occupations Occupations Occupation commonly refers to: *Occupation (human activity), or job, one's rol ...

from

Richmond, Virginia Richmond ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the Commonwealth (U.S. state), U.S. commonwealth of Virginia. Incorporated in 1742, Richmond has been an independent city (United States), independent city since 1871. ...

. He served in the

Confederate Army The Confederate States Army (CSA), also called the Confederate army or the Southern army, was the military land force of the Confederate States of America (commonly referred to as the Confederacy) during the American Civil War (1861–1865), fi ...

during the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...

and was one of the

Virginia Military Institute The Virginia Military Institute (VMI) is a public senior military college in Lexington, Virginia, United States. It was founded in 1839 as America's first state military college and is the oldest public senior military college in the U.S. In k ...

cadets who fought at the Battle of New Market. Woodbridge was the great-grandson of the preacher

John Edwards Johnny Reid Edwards (born June 10, 1953) is an American lawyer and former politician who represented North Carolina in the United States Senate from 1999 to 2005. A member of the Democratic Party, he was the vice presidential nominee under ...

and a prominent citizen of

Chester, Pennsylvania Chester is a city in Delaware County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is located in the Philadelphia metropolitan area (also known as the Delaware Valley) on the western bank of the Delaware River between Philadelphia and Wilmington, Delaware. ...

. He was married to Louise Deshong, the daughter of the wealthy Chester businessman John O. Deshong.

Early life, education, and military career

Woodbridge was born in Richmond, Virginia, to Reverend George and Rebecca (Nicolson) Woodbridge. In 1861, Woodbridge entered the

(VMI) in

Lexington, Virginia Lexington is an Independent city (United States)#Virginia, independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia, United States. At the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 7,320. It is the county seat of Rockbridge County, Virg ...

, following in the footsteps of his grandfather, a brigadier general in the Virginia Militia, and his father, Reverend George Woodbridge, who graduated from

West Point The United States Military Academy (USMA), commonly known as West Point, is a United States service academies, United States service academy in West Point, New York that educates cadets for service as Officer_(armed_forces)#United_States, comm ...

. In 1864, Woodbridge had risen to the rank of

sergeant major Sergeant major is a senior Non-commissioned officer, non-commissioned Military rank, rank or appointment in many militaries around the world. History In 16th century Spain, the ("sergeant major") was a general officer. He commanded an army's ...

, the highest-ranking noncommissioned officer in the corps. In May 1864, Woodbridge was among the cadets who served in the Battle of New Market, commanded by General John C. Breckinridge to repel the advance of General Franz Sigel in the

Shenandoah Valley The Shenandoah Valley () is a geographic valley and cultural region of western Virginia and the eastern panhandle of West Virginia in the United States. The Valley is bounded to the east by the Blue Ridge Mountains, to the west by the east ...

. After the battle of New Market, Woodbridge was promoted to Adjutant of the Corps of cadets. In April 1865, Woodbridge was among a group of VMI cadets called to Richmond to man trenches left open by General

Robert E. Lee Robert Edward Lee (January 19, 1807 – October 12, 1870) was a general officers in the Confederate States Army, Confederate general during the American Civil War, who was appointed the General in Chief of the Armies of the Confederate ...

's retreating forces. In July 1865, Woodbridge returned to VMI and graduated 10th in his class.

Shipbuilding career

After graduation, Woodbridge moved to Chester, Pennsylvania, where he worked in the drafting department of Reaney, Son & Archbold shipbuilding and continued in the department when it was purchased by the Delaware River Iron Shipbuilding and Engine Works owned by John Roach. Woodbridge eventually became the Superintending Engineer at the Roach shipyard. In 1885, Woodbridge entered the U.S. government service and was employed at the Crane shipbuilding firm in

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

, building ships for the Merchant Marines and U.S. Navy. He was employed for forty years as a naval architect and mechanical engineer.

Manor House

The Manor House was designed and built by Woodbridge in 1888 at 14th and Potter Street in Chester, Pennsylvania. It was a wedding gift to his wife Louise Deshong and was originally named "The Louise". It was modeled after the late 19th-century English country manor style and is unique for its hand made brick construction. The house was given to the city of Chester as a home for young women. In 1976,

Widener University Widener University is a private university in Chester, Pennsylvania, United States. Established in 1821, the university was known as the Pennsylvania Military College until 1972. Widener enrolls approximately 3,500 undergraduate students across s ...

purchased the home for use as a student residence. It later became home to the Phi Sigma Sigma sorority. The home is currently used by

as a student dormitory.

Personal life

Close up of Jonathan Edwards Woodbridge grave

Woodbridge married Louise Deshong on May 23, 1876. Louise was the daughter of wealthy businessman and banker John O. Deshong. They were married for 49 years until her death in 1925. Woodbridge is interred at the Chester Rural Cemetery in Chester, Pennsylvania.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Woodbridge, Jonathan 1844 births 1935 deaths 19th-century American businesspeople Burials at Chester Rural Cemetery American naval architects New Market cadets People from Chester, Pennsylvania People from Richmond, Virginia People of Virginia in the American Civil War