Admiral Henry B. Wilson Jr.

Henry Braid Wilson Jr. was born on Mount Vernon Street in Camden, NJ, on February 23, 1861, to Henry Braid Wilson Sr. and Mary Ann Wilson. His father was a prominent local figure, serving in various public roles, including as a businessman, City Council member, and Postmaster, and contributing to Camden's Commission of Public Instruction, the precursor to the Board of Education.

At 15, Henry Jr. entered the United States Naval Academy, graduating in 1881 and embarking on a distinguished naval career. He initially served as a training officer and was later stationed in diverse locations, including the West Indies, the Bering Sea, the Pacific Ocean, and the Great Lakes. During the Spanish-American War, he served as a lieutenant and was praised for his bravery.

In 1916, Wilson was appointed to command the USS Pennsylvania, the Atlantic Fleet's flagship. When the U.S. joined World War I in April 1917, he was appointed commander of American naval forces in French waters, ensuring safe convoy of troops and supplies to France without the loss of any lives.

For his exceptional wartime service, Wilson received multiple honors, including the Distinguished Service Medal from the United States, France's Grand Officer of the Legion of Honor, Italy's Commander of the Order of St. Maurice and St. Lazarus, and Portugal's Grand Official of the Military Order of Avia. In 1919, he took command of the Atlantic Fleet.

Camden welcomed Admiral Wilson back in April 1919 with celebratory receptions, parades, and a banquet at the Third Regiment Armory, where Prosecutor Charles A. Wolverton (later a 16-term Congressman from Camden) praised Wilson's leadership in the American Navy. Admiral Wilson served as the Commandant of the U.S. Naval Academy from 1921 to 1925, retiring as a Rear Admiral. He spent his retirement in California and then New York.

In November 1929, he returned to Camden for Armistice Day celebrations, during which the newly constructed Bridge Boulevard, connecting the Delaware River Bridge to the Airport Circle in Pennsauken, was renamed Admiral Wilson Boulevard in his honor. By the time of the 1930 census, Wilson and his wife, Ada, were living in Philadelphia. He passed away on January 30, 1954.

Admiral Wilson's brother, Phillip Wilson, also had a notable career, serving as president of the Central Trust Bank and later as a vice-president at Camden Trust. Phillip's wife, Emma Foulon, was the daughter of Charles Foulon, who established a bakery on Federal Street in the 1880s. After Charles Foulon's death in 1905, Emma's brother, also named Charles, ran the family bakery and ice cream parlor for many years.