John Blackburne Woodward was born at 84 Sands Street in Brooklyn, N.Y. on May 31, 1835 to Thomas Woodward, who emigrated with his father and brothers from England in 1819, and Mary Barrow Woodward (nee Blackburne). The family had four daughters and four sons, of whom John was the eldest son.
Woodward was at school from the ages of 8 to 15, when he entered the importing business of his uncle George Woodward. In 1859 he moved to the exporting business of Edward Haynes, which traded largely with Brazil and South America. He became sole proprietor in 1881, and remained at this firm until his death.
In 1854, Woodward entered the Brooklyn City Guard, 13th Regiment, as a Private. He steadily rose in rank throughout the ensuing decade, and was elected Colonel of the 13th Regiment in March of 1863. After resigning as Colonel in June of 1866 Woodward was appointed Major General of the Second Division of the New York State National Guard in March of 1869. He became Inspector General of New York State in January of 1875, and Adjutant General in April of 1879.
Acknowledged as an able businessman and conscientious citizen, Woodward also served on the Boards of numerous Brooklyn institutions and committees, many of which were public service oriented. Woodward's many positions included:
Woodward briefly entered the Brooklyn political stage when, in 1885, he made a bid for Mayor. He ran as an independent, and had the backing of Seth Low. During the race, a case was brought against the Brooklyn Daily Eagle and others for "preventing the election of John B. Woodward as Mayor." 13,641 ballots were cast for Woodward, but he lost to Whitney's 48,774 and Catlin's 37,945, though he did beat the 879 ballots cast for Funk.
Woodward resided at 259 Henry Street in Brooklyn with his wife, Elizabeth Cook Blackburne, whom he had married on May 31, 1870, and four children. Two of Woodward's children, Arthur Harris and an unknown daughter, died in 1890 and 1893, respectively, and two, Robbins Blackburne and Mary ("Mae" or "May") Blackburne, lived to adulthood. Robbins went on to have at least one daughter, Mary, named, presumably, for her aunt Mary, who died in the mid 1940s. Woodward remained at his Henry Street residence until his death in 1896, after a brief decline due to pneumonia.