Lucius D. Richards
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Charleston, Vermont, U.S.
Fremont, Nebraska, U.S.
Lucius D. Richards | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Mayor of Fremont, Nebraska | |
| In office 1879–1881 | |
| Preceded by | N. H. Bell |
| Succeeded by | Charles Sang |
| Personal details | |
| Born | November 26, 1847 Charleston, Vermont, U.S. |
| Died | August 19, 1931 (aged 83) Fremont, Nebraska, U.S. |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouse | Carro Emma Hills (m. 1871) |
| Children | 4 |
Lucius Dunbar Richards (November 26, 1847 – August 19, 1931)[1] was a banker and businessman who served as the mayor of Fremont, Nebraska, for two terms and ran unsuccessfully for Governor of Nebraska in the 1890 election.
Richards was born in Charleston, Vermont, on November 26, 1947, to parents Silas and Sarah Richards.[2] At the age of 14 in August 1862, he enlisted in Company I, Fifteenth Vermont Volunteer Infantry to fight in the Civil War. He fought at the Battle of Gettysburg.[3] Richards' regiment was commanded by Redfield Proctor, who later became United States Secretary of War and a United States Senator. Richards served nine months as Proctor's orderly which resulted in a lifelong friendship.[4] Richards later reenlisted in Company K, Seventeenth Vermont Volunteer Infantry.[2]
Early career in Fremont
After the Civil War, Richards farmed in Michigan and then entered a business college in New York where he studied railroads and later became an engineer with the Sioux City and Pacific Railroad.[4] He arrived in Fremont, Nebraska in 1868 to survey for the railroad.[4] While surveying for the Fremont, Elkhorn & Missouri Valley Railroad, he platted the town sites of Nickerson, Hooper, and Scribner.[5] In 1872, Richards left to work as an engineer in Costa Rica and became a railway superintendent there.[4]
Richards returned to Fremont in 1875 to become a businessman. He founded Richards, Keene, and Company and served as its president for 55 years. He also founded the Fremont Stockyards and Land Company and served as its president for 44 years. He also founded the First Savings Bank which later merged into the Fremont National Bank.[4]