Edward Burd, born on February 5, 1749, held the rank of major during the Revolutionary War and he held the office of prothonotary of the Pennsylvania Supreme Court from 1788 to 1805. He married his cousin, Elizabeth Shippen, the daughter of trustee Edward Shippen.
Burd served Penn between 1790 and 1791 as a trustee of the Academy and College of Philadelphia (the University of Pennsylvania in its original form), and then continued as a trustee of the University of Pennsylvania until his death in 1831. His son Edward Shippen Burd attended the Academy of Philadelphia, graduated from the University of Pennsylvania in 1794, and would serve on its board of trustees from 1831 to 1839 and 1842 to 1844.