Owen Biddle Sr. (1737 – March 10, 1799) was a clockmaker and watchmaker by trade,[1] a merchant in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, an American Revolutionary War Colonel, and an astronomer and scientist.
[2] He was engaged in mercantile pursuits, and with his younger brother, Clement Biddle, signed the Non-importation Resolutions of October 25, 1765.
[2] He was an early and active member of the American Philosophical Society, one of its curators from 1769 to 1772, and secretary from 1773 to 1782, when he became one of the councilors, continuing as such until his death.
These observations were made with eminent success by three members of the Committee, David Rittenhouse being stationed at Norristown, Dr. Ewins at Philadelphia, and Owen Biddle at Cape Henlopen, Delaware.
[4][6] He married Sarah Parke in 1760, and fathered ten children over a period of twenty years,[2] including Owen Biddle Jr. (1774–1806), a member of the Carpenters' Company of the City and County of Philadelphia.