Biographies from Historical and Biographical Annals by Morton Montgomery
p. 755
Surnames: RICHARDS, JONES, PLATT, WARD, SMITH
Rev. Elias J. Richards, D. D., for upwards of twenty-five years
pastor of the first Presbyterian Church of Reading, Pa., was born
Jan. 14, 1813, in the Valley of the Dee, in the West of England,
not many miles from the town of Llangollen in Wales, and was the
son of Hugh and Jane Ellis (Jones) Richards. His ancestors were
tillers of the soil, following the principal industry of the
surrounding region. His father was an adherent of the Presbyterian
faith, and his mother a devout member of the Church of England. The
latter died when her son Elias was but four years of age. About a
year afterward Hugh Richards, with four of his children, including
the subject of this sketch, left his native land for America,
whither his elder brother, John, a land surveyor, had preceded him.
The family resided for a time in Warren county, N. Y., and
subsequently at Utica, where the father died. Through the friendly
interest of Judge Jonas Platt, an eminent lawyer of the latter
place, the youth was enabled to secure an education. After
attending preparatory schools in New York City and Bloomfield, N.
J., he entered Princeton College in 1831, and graduated in 1834.
Having chosen the ministry as a calling, through opportunities for
entering other vocations were open to him, he returned to
Princeton, graduating at the Theological Seminary in 1838, and the
same year was licensed to preach by the Presbytery of New York. In
1839 he preached as an evangelist at Ann Arbor, Mich. In 1840 he
organized the Second Presbyterian Church at Patterson, N. J., to
which he ministered for two years, being called in 1842 to the
Western Presbyterian Church, Philadelphia.
In 1846 he accepted the repeated and urgent
invitations of the congregation of the First Presbyterian Church of
Reading to become its pastor, being installed Oct. 14th of that
year. Here his real life work was wrought. A new and handsome
Gothic church edifice was built and dedicated in 1848, taking the
place of the humble house of worship used by the congregation for
the preceding quarter of a century : the membership steadily
increased, and the church became the leading one in the Presbytery
of Lehigh. In his twenty-fifth anniversary sermon, preached July 9,
1871, and subsequently published in a memorial volume issued at his
death, Dr. Richards most feelingly recapitulated the labors and
events of his long pastorate in Reading. This was the last pulpit
production he ever wrote. Delicate in health from his early
manhood, his constitution soon after succumbed to mortal disease,
which terminated his life March 25, 1872, in the sixtieth year of
his age. Many notable tributes of affection and respect were paid
to his memory at his burial by his clerical brethren and sorrowing
friends.
Dr. Richards was a man of rare scholarly
attainments, and well versed in English literature, especially its
standard poetry, which so fittingly reflected the refinement of his
tastes and the aspirations of his soul. His sermons were equally
noted for their devotional spirit and literary grace. His heart was
warmly enlisted in the success of his country's cause during the
Civil war, and his discourses delivered upon occasions of national
observance were lofty utterances of civic faith and patriotic
impulse. In the personality of the man there was intermingled a
native dignity of manner, with a pervading tenderness of spirit,
which riveted the attention and abided in the memory. The example
of his saintly life and character irradiated an influence for the
moral uplifting of the entire community, which recognized in him a
leading mind and mourned his departure as a public loss. A marble
tablet to his memory expressive of these sentiments was erected in
the church by the congregation a few months after his decease. His
rank in his own denomination was deservedly high, and as a
recognition of his especial fitness for the office at the time it
was conferred, he was, in June, 1870, by a unanimous vote, elected
first moderator of the reunited Synod of Philadelphia.
Dr. Richards was twice married. By his first
wife, Emily T. Ward, who died in 1857, he had five children, of
whom one son and two daughters are living. He married, second,
Elizabeth Frances Smith, who, with one daughter, now deceased,
survived him.
p. 755
Surnames: RICHARDS, WARD, KERPER
Joseph W. Richards, cashier of the First National Bank, of Reading,
Pa., is the oldest son of Rev. Elias J. Richards, D. D., and his
first wife, Emily Theresa Ward ; the latter a daughter of Joseph
Ward, a merchant of Bloomfield, N. J., and a descendant from
puritan stock which settled in Connecticut in 1635. Mr. Richards
was born in Philadelphia, Jan. 21, 1844 ; was educated in
preparatory schools at Reading, Danbury (Conn.) , and Pottstown
(Pa.), and was a student of medicine at the outbreak of the Civil
war. On Aug. 10, 1862, he was mustered into service as a private in
Company A, 128th Regiment, Pennsylvania Volunteers, enlisted for
nine months, and served until May 19, 1863, the expiration of the
term. The regiment participated in the severe battles of Antietam
and Chancellorsville. In the summer of 1863 he served as a corporal
in Company C, 42nd Regiment, Pennsylvania Militia, a part of the
emergency force raised for State defense during the Confederate
invasion, and enlisted for three months. From 1865 to 1869 he was
engaged in the oil business in Cleveland, Ohio, and upon returning
to Reading was appointed a clerk in the First National Bank. Of
this institution he was in 1899 elected cashier.
Mr. Richards married, in 1872, Annie O. Kerper,
a daughter of William Kerper, merchant, of Reading, and a member of
one of its oldest families. Of their three children, one, a son,
survives. Mr. Richards is a member of Keim Post, No. 76, G. A. R.,
of Reading.
p. 663
Surnames: RICHARDS, SMITH, HEACOCK, YEAGER, HECKMAN,
SCHOLLENBERGER, BERGY, WESNER, XANDERS, BIRD, WUNDER, BRITTON
Emanuel Richards, one of Reading's substantial citizens and old
residents, and an honored veteran of the great Civil war, was born
in Windsor township, Berks county, April 6, 1843, son of William
and Sarah (Smith) Richards, and grandson of John Richards.
John Richards was a native of Scotland, and when
a young man came to America, settling in New Jersey where he
followed the occupation of furnaceman. Later he went to Chester
county, Pa., continuing his vocation there and later in Berks
county, being engaged at the Windsor furnace. Mr. Richards' last
days were spent in retirement, he passing away in 1847, aged eighty
years, in the faith of the Presbyterian Church. Politically he was
a Democrat. He was married in Scotland to Abbie Heacock, and their
children were: John, William, Eli, Abbie and Sarah.
William Richards was born in the State of New
Jersey, and there received his education. When a young man he
learned the furnace business, and locating in Chester County, Pa.,
was employed for some years at the old Potts furnace. Later he went
to Rockland, and was there engaged at what was known as the old
Sally Ann furnace, which was then owned by the Yeagers, whose name
was later changed to Hunter, and the furnace was known as the
Hunter furnace. He subsequently removed to Windsor township, Berks
county, working at the old Windsor furnace. After its
discontinuation he engaged at work in a foundry at Hamburg for
nearly forty years, and was here employed at the time of his death,
which occurred after an illness of but two days, in 1870, in his
sixty-seventh year. His wife, Mary Smith, died in 1894, aged
eight-four years, the mother of fourteen children, nine of whom
still survive. With the exception of the parents there has not been
a death in this family for over fifty years. The children are:
Jacob, of Luzerne county; Sarah, m. to Jared Heckman, deceased, and
living in Hamburg; William, of Chester county; Susan, m. to Joseph
Schollenberger, of Hamburg; Emanuel, of Reading, Rebecca, m. to
Samuel Bergy, of Reading; Charles, of Schuylkill county; Amanda,
twin of Charles, m. to James Wesner, of Reading; and Matilda, m. to
John Xanders. The parents of these children were members of the
Reformed Church. The father was a stanch Democrat in politics.
Emanuel Richards received his education in the
schools of Windsor township, Berks county, attending the first free
school established in that township. In 1861 he enlisted in Company
A, 3rd Reserves, being with the Army of the Potomac, and the first
three-year men to leave Reading. He remained with the command until
the expiration of his term of service, being wounded at the battle
of Gaines' Hill by a shot which passed through his right lung, from
the effects of which he has never fully recovered. At the same time
he was captured, and was first taken to Libby Prison, later being
removed to Belle Isle, where he was exchanged. In July, 1864, Mr.
Richards veteranized in Company A, 195th Pa. V. I., remaining with
this regiment until the close of the war. Upon his return to
Reading Mr. Richards apprenticed himself to the shoemaker's trade
with Isaac Bird of this city, and he has followed this trade with
success ever since, having been at his present location for
thirty-four years.
On Feb. 19, 1868, Mr. Richards was married to
Mary Wunder, daughter of Henry Wunder, and of their family of
children, five are living: Reynolds, a sheet-iron worker employed
by the Philadelphia and Reading Railway; William, in charge of the
credit department of Dives, Pomeroy & Stewart, of Reading;
Alice, a saleslady at G. M. Britton's store; Ida, at home, and
Harry, a clerk at the Reading Iron Works. Politically Mr. Richards
is a Democrat. He is connected with McLean Post No. 16, G. A. R.,
and is fraternally a member of the P. O. S. of A. He and his wife
attend St. Barnabas Episcopal Church.
p. 512
Surnames: RICHARDS, SILVERS, ROGERS, LUTTRELL, KNABB, HARTRANFT,
STRAN, ENDLICH, EVANS, ERMENTROUT
Louis Richards, law writer and member of the Bar of Berks county,
Pa., was born May 6, 1842, at 
Gloucester Furnace, Atlantic Co., N. J., of which
his father, John Richards, was proprietor. The latter, a native of
Berks county, came of a vigorous stock, of Welsh descent, his
paternal ancestors having settled in Amity township as early as
1718. He was for many years of his long and active life engaged in
the iron manufacturing business, principally in the State of New
Jersey, also representing Gloucester county in the Assembly in 1836
and 1837. From 1848 to 1854 he resided at Mauch Chunk, Pa., as
proprietor of the Carbon Iron Works at that place, and in the
latter year retired to a handsome country seat known as "Stowe," in
the vicinity of Pottstown, Montgomery county, where he died Nov.
29, 1871, at the patriarchal age of eighty-eight. The subject of
this sketch was his youngest son, and only child by his second
wife, Louisa (Silvers) Richards, a native of Monmouth county, N.
J., descended upon the maternal side from the well-known Rogers
family of that section, and, in the third generation, from Henry
Lawes Luttrell, second Earl of Carhampton. Employed in early life
as an instructor of youth, she was distinguished for her mental
culture, marked individuality of character, and social tastes and
accomplishments. Her decease occurred Jan. 26, 1880, when well
advanced in her eighty-first year.
Mr. Richards received his preliminary education
in the public schools of Mauch Chunk, and subsequently took an
academical course, attending the West Jersey Collegiate School at
Mount Holly, N. J., the Hill School at Pottstown, and the Upland
Normal Institute at Chester, Pa. In November, 1861, he came to
reside at Reading, commenced the study of the law under the
direction of his cousin, John S. Richards, Esq., a highly talented
and widely-known practitioner at the Berks county Bar, and was
admitted to practice Jan. 16, 1865. While a student he served in
the Pennsylvania Militia, during the invasions of the State by the
Confederate armies in 1862 and 1863.
Having an early inclination to write, he
contributed largely to the press, both before and after his
admission to the Bar, furnishing incidentally accurate reports of
all the cases tried in the county courts. In 1869 he married, and
engaged in journalism, becoming a partner of the firm of J. Knabb
& Co., in the publication of the Reading Times and Dispatch and
the Berks and Schuylkill Journal, the daily and weekly organs of
the Republican party in Berks. In 1871 he resold his interest to
the firm, and resumed the practice of the law. In 1875 he purchased
his father's estate at "Stowe," which he occasionally occupied
until 1882, when he disposed of it to the Pottstown Iron Company,
which erected thereon a very large manufacturing plant.
For many years Mr. Richards devoted much
attention to municipal law, and the municipal affairs of his
adopted city. While serving as a member of its Councils in
1875-1876 he personally revised, amended and codified its local
laws, and published in the latter year the first Digest of the
Statutes and Ordinances of Reading. Of this work he subsequently
compiled three other and more elaborate editions, containing many
valuable notes and citations of judicial decisions. In December,
1876, he was selected as Secretary of the State Municipal
Commission, appointed by Governor Hartranft to devise a uniform
plan for the better government of the cities of Pennsylvania. Of
this body, which was composed of eleven eminent lawyers and
citizens of the State, the Hon. Butler B. Strang was Chairman. The
Commission presented its final report to the Legislature in
January, 1878, and the principal features of the code which it
submitted were subsequently incorporated in the Act of June 1,
1885, for the government of the city of Philadelphia, known as the
"Bullitt Bill." As a member of committees appointed by the
Inter-Municipal Conventions of 1886 and 1888, Mr. Richards was
deputed to prepare the original drafts of the Acts of May 24, 1887,
and May 23, 1889, the latter constituting the present frame of
government of cities of the third class in Pennsylvania. In these
several capacities he rendered much valuable service to the people
of the State, and acquired a wide reputation as a skillful
draftsman of municipal statutes. He is a charter member of the
Pennsylvania Bar Association, organized in 1895, serving for some
years past upon its committee on Legal Biography. In the interest
of law reform he devised and secured the passage by the Legislature
of the Act of July 9, 1897, "declaring the construction of words in
a deed, will or other instrument, importing a failure of issue."
In 1889, in association with the Hon. G. A.
Endlich, Law Judge of the Berks district, then also a practitioner
at the Bar, he was the author of a treatise upon the "Rights and
Liabilities of Married Women in Pennsylvania," devoted principally
to the exposition of the Married Persons' Property Act of 1887,
which greatly enlarged the contractual powers of femes covert. In
1895 he issued, in two volumes, the "Pennsylvania Form Book,"
containing precedents in the various branches of law practice - a
work in general use by the profession throughout the State - and,
in 1898, a "Digest of Acts of Assembly for the Government of Cities
of the Third Class," which was followed by two successive editions.
His other published productions include numerous law pamphlets,
historical and genealogical sketches, and reports and addresses
upon various subjects of professional or general interest.
Profoundly devoted to antiquarian researches, he has since 1903
been President of the Historical Society of Berks County, giving to
its affairs much attention and intelligent direction. He is also a
member of the Historical Society of Pennsylvania, and an occasional
contributor to its Magazine of History and Biography. His only
business connection is with the Charles Evans Cemetery Company, of
which he has been for the past fifteen years the efficient
secretary and treasurer.
Distinguished for his public spirit, he has
employed his time and talents in the promotion of every movement in
the line of progress, good government and reform. In politics Mr.
Richards is a Republican, and in the Presidential campaign of 1884
was the candidate of the minority party in the Berks district for
Congress against Daniel Ermentrout, the sitting member, receiving
9,405 votes. His political views are, however, strongly tempered
with the spirit of independence, which inclines to subordinate mere
partisan considerations to the superior obligations of individual
good citizenship.
As a member of the Bar he is recognized as a
highly reputable, accurate and painstaking practitioner, though it
is in the capacity of a writer, of marked vigor and skill, that he
is best known to the public. His literary tastes are cultured and
absorbing, and it is in the companionship of his books, and the
environment of the student, that he finds his chief entertainment
and solace. Practical and thorough in all his methods and
undertakings, he devotes to the performance of every duty in which
he may engage his best abilities and most conscientious efforts.
Mr. Richards has four children - three sons and
a daughter - all of whom have reached maturity.
p.
435
Surnames: RICHARDS, TREMYN, BOYER, CLARK, SHULER
Richard Richards, formerly chief burgess of Boyertown and
superintendent at present of the Boyertown Ore Company, an
important enterprise of this place, was born Jan. 24, 1832, in
Cornwall, England, son of Richard and Elizabeth (Tremyn) Richards,
both natives of Cornwall.
Richard Richards, the father, was born in 1800,
and died aged seventy years. He followed mining as his business.
His wife died when his son Richard was eight years old. Their
children were: Margaret, Elizabeth, Thomas, Frances, Richard,
William, Benjamin and Mary Jane. The name of Richards is not an
unusual one in England, and on the same vessel crossing the
Atlantic Ocean, which brought the present Richard Richards to
America, was another passenger, named Simon Richards, also of
Cornwall. The two men of the same name became acquainted and
discussed their possible relationship, but did not establish their
kinship. Simon Richards settled in Cumru township, Berks county,
where he acquired a small farm, but for many years he has been at
rest in the graveyard at Yocom's Church. He reared a family and his
son James became supervisor of Cumru township and his numerous
children still reside there or in Reading.
Richard Richards, of Boyerstown, is a man of
large experience in mining and he was only eight years old when he
began working the tin mines of Cornwall. He was only sixteen when
he went down into some of the deepest mines, even to the depth of
600 feet. In the spring of 1853, hoping to better his fortunes, he
started to America, landing at old Castle Garden, New York. During
the first year he lived at Phoenixville, Pa., but in 1854 he came
to Berks county and secured employment in the Moselem iron ore
mine, where he continued until April, 1855, when he went to Tamaqua
and found work in the coal mines in Schuylkill, and later in
Luzerne county. In the fall of that year he came to Boyertown and
here he has remained ever since, as time passed becoming closer and
closer identified with the interests of this borough, and each year
adding to his material possessions and advancing in the esteem and
confidence of his fellow citizens.
Mr. Richards worked first for the Phoenix Iron
Company, and was continuously in their employ for forty-seven
years, beginning as an ordinary miner and being advanced rapidly.
Since 1861 he has been superintendent of that great corporation. He
has a complete and comprehensive knowledge of the mining industry
and has lived to see wonderful changes in his day in methods and
results. The Boyertown Ore Company, a consolidation of the
different ore companies at this pace, closed mining in March, 1907,
and since then Mr. Richards looks after the properties and cares
for the buildings. Despite his long life of hard work, both
physical and mental, Mr. Richards retains his strength and
healthful appearance. He is known for his kindness of heart, and
this quality is revealed in his countenance.
Mr. Richards has been married twice. On Sept.
10, 1857, he married (first) Lavina Boyer, daughter of Daniel
Boyer, who, with his brother Henry, founded Boyertown. Mrs.
Richards was born in 1825 and died in 1881, and was buried in
Fairview Cemetery. They had one daughter, Mary (m. Thomas Clark, a
native of Cornwall, England, who is connected with the Walter
Sanitarium at Wernersville, Berks county). Mr. Richards m.
(second), Dec. 24, 1890, Sallie B. Shuler, born July 5, 1857, died
Dec. 28, 1890. He is a member of the M. E. Church and was one of
its organizers at Boyertown, one of the first trustees and a
steward for nearly a half century. In his fraternal relations, he
belongs to the Brotherhood of the Union; Knights of the Mystic
Chain; Madison Lodge, I. O. O. F., at Pottstown; Stichter Lodge,
No. 254, R. & A. M., Pottstown; Phoenix Chapter, No. 198, R. A.
M., Phoenixville; and Palestine Council, No. 8, R. & S. M.,
Phoenixville.
In his political views Mr. Richards has always
been a Republican, and has been honored by election to office in a
normally Democratic town, for years serving as a member of the town
council, and in the eighties as chief burgess. On many occasions he
has attended conventions of his party as a delegate. Above all he
is a good citizen and has many times shown that he has the best
interests of the place at heart.
p. 413
Surnames: RICHARDS
Thomas Myers Richards, for fifty years connected with the Reading
Railway Company, and from 1905 until his death, Sept. 5, 1908,
vice-president of the Philadelphia & Reading Coal and Iron
Company, was born at Pottsville, Pa., Oct. 27, 1835.
Mr. Richards attended the public schools of
Pottsville until 1842, when his parents removed to Reading, and he
there attended the local schools until he was thirteen years old.
He then worked in different stores for ten years, and he entered
the employ of the Philadelphia & Reading Railway Company, Oct.
3, 1858, as a clerk in the office of the master machinist, and he
was afterward connected with this great railroad, with the
exception of the time of his service in the army. In 1867, he was
transferred to Port Richmond to take charge of the shipment of
coal, and he continued there until 1875, when he was promoted to
the head of the coal sales department of the P. & R. Coal and
Iron Co., with quarters in the general office, No. 227 South Fourth
street, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. His services were so highly
appreciated that March 15, 1905, he was elected second
vice-president of the company, and April 2, 1906, first
vice-president. His employment with the company covers an
extraordinary period of time, and his promotion to the head of the
coal department, which is the largest in the country, in point of
traffic, attests in the highest degree, not only his superior
ability in the discharge of his responsible duties, but his great
fidelity to the enormous financial interests of the company.
In April, 1861, Mr. Richards responded to
President Lincoln's appeal for troops in the Civil War, by raising
a company of infantry, which became Co. G, of the First Regiment
Pennsylvania Volunteers. They were mustered into service April 20,
1861, and Mr. Richards was elected second lieutenant. The company
was discharged at the end of its term of enlistment, July 26, 1861.
He assisted in raising another company for nine months, which on
Aug. 16, 1862, was mustered in as Company E, 128th Pennsylvania
Volunteers, and rendered meritorious services. He entered as first
lieutenant and was promoted to captain Sept. 18, 1862, which
commission he held until his discharge, May 19, 1863. He was
wounded at the battle of Chancellorsville May 3, 1863. Upon the
company's return to Reading, he re-entered the employ of the
railroad company which had retained his position for him. He died
Sept. 5, 1908, after several months' illness.
p. 434
Surnames: RICHARDSON, MILLER, BECK, SNYDER, LEE, BRUNNER, AHRENS,
HACOCK,
Charles M. Richardson, one of the most extensive creamery operators
in Pennsylvania, was born Oct. 8, 1858, in Ontelaunee township,
Berks county, where his father and grandfather resided before him.
William Richardson, his grandfather, lived at
one time in Bern township. He was located at Baltimore during the
Civil war. He died in Ontelaunee township, leaving one son,
Emanuel.
Emanuel Richardson, the father of the subject of
this sketch, was born in Ontelaunee township and there followed
farming, also engaging in milling to some extent. Moving to Exeter
township, also in Berks county, he bought the old "Daniel Boone"
homestead, containing 153 acres, upon which he carried on farming
until his death. He married Lydia Miller, and they had the
following children: Charles M. ; Kate, the wife of Edward Beck ;
Owen, of Reading ; Mary, wife of Daniel Snyder, of Reading ; Frank,
of Reading ; Wilson, of Berne ; and Ella, wife of George Lee, of
Reading.
Charles M. Richardson attended the public
schools of his district when a boy, and later (1878-1879) the
business college of Prof. D. B. Brunner, at Reading. He was engaged
in creamery work as early as 1883 in Exeter township, near
Stonersville. He made his first independent venture in the creamery
business in 1888 at Lyon Valley, Lehigh Co., Pa. During the twenty
years which have since intervened he has developed his business and
increased his operations to such an extent that he is now
interested in more than thirty creameries located throughout this
State and New York. He is president of the High Ground Dairy
Company, of Brooklyn, N. Y., which operates a number of large
creameries in New York State, and also conducts a large retail milk
business in Brooklyn, New York City. He is vice-president of the
Harford Dairy Company, of Harford, Susquehanna Co., Pa., which
operates eight large plants in that county. He is also a member of
the firm of Richardson Brothers, of Berne, Pa., and he is
associated with Mr. Howard E. Ahrens, of Reading, Pa., in the firm
of Ahrens & Richardson, Bernville, Pa. During the past ten
years he has also obtained control of ten small plants, scattered
along the East Penn branch of the Reading Railway, between
Allentown and Reading. These plants he operates independently under
the management of S. W. Hacock, Mertztown, Pennsylvania.
In 1891 Mr. Richardson located at Bernville,
Pa., at which place he has since made his home. He is prominent and
active in the public life and welfare of the borough. He has served
for thirteen years as a member of the school board, acting at
various times as secretary and president. He was treasurer of the
Old Home Week Committee in 1907 and is at present the secretary of
the First National Bank of Bernville, with which he has been
connected as a director since its organization. He is a member of
the Reformed Church, which he has served as both deacon and elder.
He has also served as treasurer of the Sunday school for a number
of years.
In politics he is a Republican, and for the past
few years he has been the Republican committeeman of the borough.
In fraternal connection he is a member of I. O. O. F. Lodge No. 122
and of P. O. S. of A. Camp No. 113.
As for his private life, Mr. Richardson married
Elizabeth T. Snyder, daughter of "Squire" William H. Snyder, of
Oley Line, Berks Co., Pa. His family consists of four sons: Edgar
S., a graduate of Princeton University, class of 1905, and at
present a registered student-at law from Berks county in the Law
Department of the University of Pennsylvania (he was also
prominently connected with the celebration of Old Home Week in
1907) ; William E., a prominent member of the class of 1910 of
Princeton University ; and Charles S. and Frank, both students in
the Bernville grammar School.
p.
1165
Surnames: RICHARDSON, KOCH, RHEIN, MACKEY, FOOS
Robert E. Richardson, secretary to the Superintendent of Public
Schools and chief clerk of the Board of Education, being appointed
in 1901 by Superintendent Ebenezer Mackey, and retained by
Superintendent Charles S. Foos, when he came to the office, was
born in Upper Bern township, Berks county, Pa., May 8, 1883.
James K. Richardson, grandfather of Robert E.
lived at Shartlesville, Berks county, where he died at the age of
seventy. He served in the war of the Rebellion for two years,
having enlisted in Company H, 128th Pa. V. L., and Company E, 46th
Pa. V. I.
Thomas M. Richardson, son of James K. and father
of Robert E., is a traveling salesman, a member of the board of
education, and prominent in the Democratic party of Reading. He
married Sarah H. Koch, daughter of the late Daniel Koch, who was a
leather manufacturer and retail merchant of Reading. Of the four
children born to this marriage, Emma M. died in infancy; Mamie R.
and Herbert C. still reside at home; and Robert E. is the subject
of this brief review.
Robert E. Richardson received his preliminary
training in the public schools at Strausstown, and private school,
with which equipment he entered the Inter-State Commercial College,
at Reading. Here he pursued an English and full commercial course,
graduating in 1900. His connection with the school board began in
the year following, as related above. Mr. Richardson's efficiency
in the office is due largely to his thoughtfulness, close
observation and exactness and his goodly amount of common sense.
On July 8, 1903, Mr. Richardson married Miss
Flora A. Rhein, daughter of John G. Rhein, a contracting painter of
the city. They have had three children: Elmer J.; Sarah C., who
died in infancy; and Thomas M., born in February, 1909.
Mr. Richardson is a consistent member of the St.
Stephen's Reformed Church. His interest in politics is shown by
membership in the Democratic organization known as the
North-Eastern Democratic Association, in which he is an
officeholder. Mr. Richardson is an expert touch typewriter
operator. He is a photographer of ability, and has a well-equipped
photographic studio and darkroom, in which he delights spending
many of his spare moments.
p. 946
Surnames: RICHARDSON, BOONE, MILLER, BECK, SNYDER, LEE, RENTSCHLER,
FLEISHER
Wilson Richardson, manufacturer of fine creamery butter at Bern
Station, Berks county, is a son of Emanuel Richardson and grandson
of William Richardson. William Richardson lived in Bern and
Ontelaunee townships, Berks county, and died in the latter
township, leaving one son, Emanuel. During the Civil war he was
located at Baltimore.
Emanuel Richardson was born in Ontelaunee
township, and there followed farming, also engaging in milling to
some extent. Moving to Exeter township, also in Berks county, he
bought the old Daniel Boone homestead, containing 153 acres, upon
which he carried on farming until his death. He married Lydia
Miller, and they had children as follows: Charles M., who is
extensively engaged in the creamery business in Berks and
Susquehanna counties, Pa.; Kate, wife of Edward Beck; Owen, who
lives in Reading; Mary, wife of Daniel R. Snyder; Frank, a
traveling man, of Reading, Pa.; Wilson; and Ella, wife of George
Lee, of Reading.
Wilson Richardson was born Feb. 10, 1873, in
Ontelaunee township, Berks county, and received his education in
Exeter township, attending the Friends' school. He worked at home
with his father for a time, and gained his early experience in the
business he now follows with his brother, Charles M. Richardson, at
Bernville, being in his employ for a period of ten years before he
went into the business on his own account. His brother conducts a
number of creameries located in various parts of Berks and
Susquehanna counties, and is a member of the well-known firm of
Ahrens & Richardson. In 1901 Wilson Richardson embarked in the
creamery business at Bern Station, where he has his principal
establishment, also conducting four branches, at Stoudt's, Upper
Bern, Lesher's Mill and Spangler's Mill. Mr. Richardson employs
seven men and has a steady patronage for his product, which
includes between five hundred and six hundred pounds of fine
creamery butter daily, and which is marketed in the coal regions of
Schuylkill county. He also supplies dealers with fresh cream and
eggs. Mr. Richardson is one of the prominent citizens of his
district, where he has many friends among his personal
acquaintances as well as among his business associates. He has
prospered by good management, and his standing is of the highest.
Mr. Richardson married Miss Tansey Rentschler,
daughter of Charles and Cassia (Fleisher) Rentschler, and they have
had one child, Paul W., who is now attending school.
As a Mason Mr. Richardson belongs to Vaux Lodge,
No. 406, F. & A. M., of Hamburg; to Excelsior Chapter; to
Reading Lodge of Perfection, No. 142; and also to Reading
Commandery, No. 42, Knights Templar. He is a member of the Reformed
Church and a Republican in politics, and has served as tax
collector of the borough of Bernville.