John Ross Riddle "Rev.War Col"

John Ross Riddle, described in family material as “Rev.War Col,” was born 4 December 1761 near the Raritan River in Middlesex, New Jersey. He was said to have served at sea during the Revolutionary War and later became a blacksmith, pioneer, landowner, and Ohio militia officer. Family material places him in Cincinnati by 1790, where he died at Cumminsville on 17 June 1847.

John Ross Riddle was born on 4 December 1761 near the Raritan River in Middlesex, New Jersey, then British Colonial America. A Heritage Village Museum booklet describes him as a native of New Jersey and portrays him as a large man, reportedly standing 5 feet 10 inches tall and weighing 225 pounds.

Family-tree notes state that Riddle served during the Revolutionary War, including service at sea between 1778 and 1785. Those notes describe him as a ship’s captain who captured a British man-of-war and sailed it back to the colonies. They also state that he was commissioned a lieutenant in the Revolutionary Navy on 23 August 1797, while at sea off the coast of New York. These military and naval details require further documentation, and the stated commission date falls after the usual end of the Revolutionary War.

According to the Heritage Village Museum booklet, Riddle immigrated to Cincinnati in 1790, during the city’s early formative years. He was a blacksmith and was later described as a substantial landowner in Hamilton County, Ohio. Family material further says that he received two sections of land for Revolutionary War service, although no supporting land record is supplied here.

The notes state that Riddle became a captain in the Ohio State Militia on 13 May 1804 and was commissioned a colonel in the Ohio State Militia on 17 March 1811 in Hamilton County, Ohio. The museum booklet likewise characterizes him as a militia commander. He is also identified in family material with the title “Rev.War Col.”

A Charleville musket associated with Colonel John Riddle was preserved by his descendants and was reportedly donated to the Daughters of the American Revolution in the early 1900s. When ownership of the 1804 Kemper Log Home passed from the Daughters of the American Revolution to the National Society of the Colonial Dames of America in the State of Ohio in 1952, the musket reportedly passed with it.

Riddle died on 17 June 1847 at Cumminsville, Cincinnati, Hamilton County, Ohio. A Find a Grave–shared note reports that Colonel John Riddle Sr. is included on a Soldiers of the Revolution memorial. Family material also claims that he served as lieutenant governor of Ohio, but no dates or supporting documentation for that office are provided in the supplied material.

Historical context

Riddle’s reported move to Cincinnati in 1790 placed him in southwest Ohio during its early settlement period. The Heritage Village Museum booklet presents his story through an artifact, a Model 1773 Charleville musket, and connects his later life with Cincinnati’s formative years, the Kemper Log Home, the Daughters of the American Revolution, and the National Society of the Colonial Dames of America in the State of Ohio.

Sources & research

Heritage Village Museum booklet excerpt, “Colonel John Riddle,” written by Education Director Steve Preston, identified as a Master of Arts Public History Candidate at Northern Kentucky University; booklet reportedly available through the Heritage Village Museum gift shop.

Family Tree Maker original notes for John Ross Riddle.

Find a Grave–shared article or note, originally shared by Carol Clair on 18 September 2020: “Col John Riddle Sr. 17 Jun 1847 Cincinnati, Hamilton County, Ohio, USA Is included on Soldiers of the Revolution memorial.”

The Society of the Colonial Dames in Ohio / Heritage Village Museum artifact history concerning the 1804 Kemper Log Home and the Model 1773 Charleville Musket associated with Colonel John Riddle.