Robert Kerr Richards
American socialite in the Gilded Age
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Robert Kerr Richards (August 26, 1834 – December 31, 1924) was an American who was prominent in New York Society during the Gilded Age.
Maria Kerr Richards
Robert Kerr Richards | |
|---|---|
| Born | August 26, 1834 |
| Died | December 31, 1924 (aged 90) New York City, New York, U.S. |
| Alma mater | Yale University Massachusetts Institute of Technology |
| Parent(s) | William H. Richards Maria Kerr Richards |
Early life
Richards was born on August 26, 1834. He was the son of William H. Richards (1808–1881) and Maria E. (née Kerr) Richards (1806–1879).[1]
He namesake was his uncle Robert Kerr Richards (1806–1874), a Yale and Litchfield Law School graduate who married Matilda Lamb (1806–1854),[2] the daughter of General Anthony Lamb (son of Revolutionary War General John Lamb).[3][4] Another uncle, Timothy Pickering Richards was married to Agnes Treat Lamb, the sister of his aunt Matilda.[5] His niece was Sarah F. Richards of Black Stump Road in Queens.[6]
Richards attended Yale University, where he was a member of the Sigma chapter of Delta Psi fraternity, and Massachusetts Institute of Technology, where he was a member of the Tau Chapter of Delta Psi Fraternity.[7]
Society life
In 1892, Richards was included in Ward McAllister's "Four Hundred", purported to be an index of New York's best families, published in The New York Times.[8] Conveniently, 400 was the number of people that could fit into Mrs. Astor's ballroom.[9] Richards regularly attended the Patriarchs Ball (founded by McAllister in 1872) and many society events including musicales at the Waldorf,[10] performances at the Metropolitan Opera,[11] and the Bradley-Martin Ball in 1897.[12]
Personal life
Richards had a home in Bayside on Long Island known as Greenoak Farm.[13]
Richards died after a brief illness on Wednesday morning, December 31, 1924.[14] His funeral was held at St. James's Chapel at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine and he was buried at Grace Episcopal Churchyard in Queens.[15] His niece Sarah was the executrix of his estate.