User:JPRiley/Joseph R. Richards

Joseph R. Richards (1828-1900) was an American architect, practicing in Boston during the nineteenth century. He was responsible for the first permanent building of the Massachusetts Agricultural College, now the University of Massachusetts Amherst, as well as buildings for Dartmouth and Williams and several public libraries.

Early life and career
Joseph R. Richards was born in Boston on February 18, 1828 to Wyatt and Sarah Page (Ruggles) Richards. He attended public schools and graduated from the English High School in 1845. In October of that year he entered the office of Gridley J. F. Bryant, then one of the city's best-known architects. Richards remained with Bryant until he opened his own office, on January 1, 1853. At various times he was associated in his business with his brother, Samuel W. Richards, and William S. Park, both of whom had also worked in Bryant's office.

Park would eventually marry Richards' sister, and Richards and Park formed a partnership in July, 1865. This ended with Park's death in July, 1872. Richards was alone again until 1880, when he established a partnership with his son, William P. Richards. This firm, J. R. & W. P. Richards, lasted until the elder's death, which occured on September 28, 1900.

In September, 1867 Richards was elected a Fellow of the Boston Society of Architects, which had been organized a few montht prior. He remained a member until his death, but was never a member of the national American Institute of Architects. In 1880 he was elected an Associate of the American Society of Civil Engineers. In addition to these professional affiliations, he was also a member of several fraternal organizations.

Personal life
Richards married in 1851, to Mary Ann Phillips of South Natick, Massachusetts. They lived in Boston but soon relocated to Cambridge, Massachusetts, where the family would remain for the remainder of Richards' life. They had three children, two sons and a daughter. At his death, he was survived by his wife, daughter, and younger son, William Phillips Richards.

William Phillips Richards was born in Cambridge on February 1, 1855. He attended Harvard University, graduating with the class of 1876. He worked for his father and in the office of Peabody & Stearns until joining his father in partnership in 1880. In 1881 he married Alice Sarah Goodale of Elgin, Illinois. After his father's death, William P. Richards maintained a private practice in Boston until his retirement in 1918. He died at his home in Somerville on April 8, 1925.