Mark Richards (politician)

Mark Richards (July 15, 1760 – August 10, 1844) was an American politician. He served as a member of the United States House of Representatives from Vermont and as the ninth lieutenant governor of Vermont.

Mark Richards
9th Lieutenant Governor of Vermont
In office
1830–1831
Preceded byHenry Olin
Succeeded byLebbeus Egerton
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Vermont's At-large congressional district
In office
March 4, 1817 – March 3, 1821
Preceded byLuther Jewett
Succeeded byPhineas White
Member of the Vermont Governor's Council
In office
1815–1816
Preceded byWilliam Hall Jr.
Succeeded byTheophilus Crawford
In office
1813–1814
Preceded byWilliam Czar Bradley
Succeeded byWilliam Hall Jr.
Sheriff of Windham County, Vermont
In office
1806–1811
Preceded bySamuel Fletcher
Succeeded byGilbert Dennison
Member of the Vermont House of Representatives from Westminster
In office
1834–1835
Preceded byJohn Smith
Succeeded byVacant
In office
1832–1833
Preceded byCyrus Boynton
Succeeded byJohn Smith
In office
1828–1829
Preceded byEbenezer Goodell
Succeeded byDaniel Mason
In office
1826–1827
Preceded byGideon Warner
Succeeded byEbenezer Goodell
In office
1824–1825
Preceded byElijah Ranney Jr.
Succeeded byEbenezer Goodell
In office
1804–1805
Preceded byEphraim Ranney Jr.
Succeeded byEphraim Ranney Jr.
In office
1801–1802
Preceded byEphraim Ranney Jr.
Succeeded byStephen R. Bradley
Personal details
Born(1760-07-15)July 15, 1760
Waterbury, Connecticut Colony, British America
DiedAugust 10, 1844(1844-08-10) (aged 84)
Westminster, Vermont, U.S.
Resting placeOld Westminster Cemetery, Westminster, Vermont
Political partyDemocratic-Republican
SpouseAnn Ruggles (m. 1782-1841, her death)
ProfessionMerchant

Biography

Richards was born in Waterbury in the Connecticut Colony on July 15, 1760, and received limited schooling. In 1776, he enlisted for the American Revolution.[1] A private in the Continental Army, he served for several years, including the Battle of Red Bank, the 1777-1778 winter encampment at Valley Forge, the Battle of Monmouth, and the Battle of Stony Point. Richards moved to Boston after the war to work in a general store. In 1796 he moved to Westminster, Vermont, to open his own store.

Richards was a member of the Vermont House of Representatives from 1801 to 1805. He served as sheriff of Windham County from 1806 to 1810 and was a Presidential elector in 1812.[2] He served on the Governor’s council from 1813 to 1816.

Richards was elected as a Democratic-Republican to the US House of Representatives, and served from 1817 to 1821 as a member of the 15th and 16th United States Congress.[3][4] He served again in the Vermont House of Representatives from 1824 to 1826, in 1828 and from 1832 to 1834. He was the Lieutenant Governor of Vermont from 1830 to 1831.[4]

Death

Richards died on August 10, 1844, in Westminster, Vermont, and is interred in the Bradley tomb in the Old Westminster Cemetery in Westminster.[1]

Family

In 1782, Richards married Ann Ruggles. Their daughter Sarah was the wife of William Czar Bradley.

References
  1. "RICHARDS, Mark, (1760 - 1844)". Biographical Directory of the United States Congress. Retrieved October 24, 2012.
  2. "Mark Richards (1760-1844)". The Political Graveyard. Retrieved October 24, 2012.
  3. "Rep. Mark Richards". govtrack.us. Retrieved October 24, 2012.
  4. Herringshaw's National Library of American Biography, American Publishers Association, Chicago, Ill., 1914, p. 1


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