Owen Biddle Jr.

{{Short description|American architect (1774–1806)}}

{{Infobox person

| name = Owen Biddle, Jr.

| image =

| birth_date = April 28, 1774

| birth_place =

| death_date = May 25, 1806

| death_place = Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

| parents = Owen Biddle, Sr.

| spouse =

| occupation = Architect

| notable_works = Designer of Philadelphia's Arch Street Friends Meetinghouse ({{circa|1803}}-1804)

}}

Owen Biddle Jr. (April 28, 1774{{spaced ndash}}May 25, 1806) was an American carpenter and builder, based in Philadelphia. A Quaker, he designed that city's Arch Street Friends Meetinghouse circa 1803–1804. A Georgian structure, the building's East and West rooms were added, respectively, in 1804 and 1811."[http://www.historicasmh.org/our-history/meetinghousehistory/ Meetinghouse History]." Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: Arch Street Meetinghouse, retrieved online February 23, 2019.

Background

File:Friends Meeting House, late 19th century.jpg Biddle, the son of clockmaker Owen Biddle Sr.,Radbill, Kenneth A. "[https://journals.psu.edu/phj/article/viewFile/24012/23781 Quaker Patriots: The Leadership of Owen Biddle and John Lacey, Jr.]", in Pennsylvania History: A Journal of Mid-Atlantic Studies, Vol. 45, No. 1, January 1978 (available online via [https://journals.psu.edu/phj/search/results Penn State University Libraries] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200314180606/https://journals.psu.edu/phj/article/download/24012/23781/0 |date=2020-03-14 }}). Mansfield, Pennsylvania: Pennsylvania Historical Association. is best known for his influential handbook, The Young Carpenter's Assistant, which was published in 1805. In 1833, the book was revised and expanded by Philadelphia architect John Haviland, who republished it as An Improved and Enlarged Edition of Biddle's Young Carpenter's Assistant.

Biddle was elected to the Carpenters' Company of the City and County of Philadelphia in 1800. Three years later, he began work on the Arch Street Friends Meetinghouse,Mather, Eleanor Price. "[https://muse.jhu.edu/article/394471/pdf An Architectural Study of Arch Street Meeting House, Fourth and Arch Streets, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (review)]," in Quaker History, Vol. 60, No. 1, Spring 1971, pp. 53-54. Haverford, Pennsylvania: Friends Historical Association."[https://digital.librarycompany.org/islandora/object/Islandora:3576/print?clip=rft_id%3Dhttp%253A%252F%252Fdigital.librarycompany.org%252Fislandora%252Fobject%252FIslandora%25253A3576%252Fdatastream%252FJP2%252Fview%253Ftoken%253Dc4eae3f62c2dd6a3e56212473ab021dc7c84ee518b671072dc30f0fa9c0ae843%26svc.region%3D0%252C0%252C4984%252C6150%26dimensions%3D6156%252C4984 Arch St. Meeting House, from a little nearer Arch St. than last, [Philadelphia] [graphic]]." Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: The Library Company of Philadelphia, retrieved online February 23, 2019. which is still in use today.

From 1805 to 1806, Biddle also designed and oversaw the creation of the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts Building. In addition, he also played a role in the construction of several homes in Philadelphia's Society Hill neighborhood, several of which still stand, and in creating the Schuylkill Permanent Bridge. America's first covered bridge, the latter structure was designed by Timothy Palmer."[http://www.historicasmh.org/our-history/meetinghousehistory/architect/ Owen Biddle Architect]." Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: Arch Street Meeting House, retrieved online February 23, 2019.

=Death and interment=

Biddle died at the age of 32 on May 25, 1806, and was buried on the grounds of the Arch Street Friends Meetinghouse."Owen Biddle Architect," Arch Street Meeting House.

References

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