Background
Biddle was born in New Utah City, Michigan. His father was William Shepard Biddle (1830–1902) and mother was Susan Dayton Ogden (1831–1878).
Biddle was born in New Utah City, Michigan. His father was William Shepard Biddle (1830–1902) and mother was Susan Dayton Ogden (1831–1878).
He attended the University of Michigan but left before obtaining a degree. He then graduated from the United States Military Academy in 1881.
His Biddle family included many political and military leaders, including grandfather John Biddle (1792–1859) and great-grandfather Charles Biddle (1745–1821). Biddle was commissioned an engineer Biddle was in charge of river and harbor work at Nashville, Tennessee from 1891–1898.
When the Spanish–American War broke out, he became Chief Engineer of Volunteers, serving in Puerto Rico, Cuba, and the Philippines.
He was awarded the. From 1901–1907 he was Engineer-Commissioner in charge of public works in Washington, District of Columbia Subsequently, he was in charge of river and harbor work in San Francisco from 1907–1911 and then served as an observer with the Austro-Hungarian Army on the Eastern Front from November 1914 to June 1915. He then was in charge of river and harbor improvements in Baltimore, Maryland.
Biddle served as the Superintendent of the United States Military Academy at West Point from July 1916 to June 1917. In 1918 he was again sent overseas to take charge of American troops in Great Britain and Ireland.
Biddle died in San Antonio, Texas after a long illness.