Member Biography
Jacob Elwood Ridgway
| Sessions | Office | Position | District | Party |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1863 | 1 | Republican | ||
| 1864 | 1 | Republican | ||
| 1865 | 2 | Republican | ||
| 1866 | 2 | Republican | ||
| 1867 | 2 | Republican | ||
| 1868 | 2 | Republican |
COUNTIES: Philadelphia
Biography
Jacob Elwood Ridgway (R1) Philadelphia County 1863-1864 (R2) Philadelphia (Part) County 1865-1868
Early Life:
Jacob Elwood Ridgeway, born, August 19, 1824, Salem, Salem County, New Jersey; son of Job and Rebecca Elbin Ridgway; attended, Quaker School; captain, Civil War, 1862; carpenter; master builder; engaged, shipping business, 1853-1880; elected, city council, Philadelphia, 1855-1857; elected, Republican, Pennsylvania House of Representatives, 1860-1861; elected, Republican, Pennsylvania State Senate, 1863-1868; founder, vice president, Union Passenger Railway, 1864-1883; owner, various coal, gold and silver mines; president, Quaker City National Bank, 1892-1909, president, Atlantic City and Chelsea Improvement Company; director, vice president, Keystone Telephone Company; married Sarah Shreve, 1848 (d. 1881), children, Caleb Shreve Ridgway, Anna Ridgway Bishop, Martha Shreve Ridgway Bement; remarried, Barbara A. Kuhlmeyer, 1894; died, May 6, 1909 (aged 84), city of Philadelphia, Philadelphia County, Pennsylvania; interment, Laurel Hill Cemetery, Philadelphia, Philadelphia County, Pennsylvania.
Early Career:
Captain, Company I, 119th Regiment, Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry, Civil War, 1862.
Carpenter; master builder; engaged, shipping business, 1853-1880.
Founder and vice president, Union Passenger Railway, 1864-1883.
Owner, various coal, gold and silver mines.
President, Quaker City National Bank, 1892-1909.
Pennsylvania Politics:
Elected, city council, Philadelphia, 1855-1857.
Elected, Republican, Pennsylvania House of Representatives, 1860- 1861; not a candidate for reelection, 1862.
Elected, Republican, Pennsylvania State Senate, 1st district, Philadelphia County, 1863-1864, Republican, 2nd district, Philadelphia (Part) County, 1865-1868; committee assignments, Public Printing and Railroad Committees.
Pennsylvania House of Representatives Biography:
Official Website - PA House Archives Official Website (state.pa.us)
Cited:
Cox, Harold. "Senate Members "R"". Wilkes University Election Statistics Project. Wilkes University.
Smull’s Legislative Handbook, (1867). Smull, J.A., (Editor) Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, pages 257, 261-264.
Smull’s Legislative Handbook, (1868). Smull, J.A., (Editor) Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, pages 276, 280-282.
Jacob Elwood Ridgway (1824-1909) - Find a Grave Memorial