Bartlett Richards (January 6, 1862 – September 5, 1911) was a Cattle Baron and Banker who owned or fenced in vast acreage in Wyoming and Nebraska.

Early and family life

Born on January 6, 1862, in

Weathersfield, Vermont Weathersfield is a town in Windsor County, Vermont, United States. The population was 2,842 at the 2020 census. History The town of Weathersfield was named for Wethersfield, Connecticut, the home of some of its earliest settlers. The Connectic ...

, the son of Rev. J. DeForest Richards, a

Congregational church Congregational churches (also Congregationalist churches or Congregationalism) are Protestant churches in the Calvinist tradition practising congregationalist church governance, in which each congregation independently and autonomously runs its ...

pastor A pastor (abbreviated as "Pr" or "Ptr" , or "Ps" ) is the leader of a Christian congregation who also gives advice and counsel to people from the community or congregation. In Lutheranism, Catholicism, Eastern Orthodoxy, Oriental Orthodoxy and ...

and Harriet Bartlett Jarvis. At the age of ten, after his father died, Richards was sent to

Phillips Academy ("Not for Self") la, Finis Origine Pendet ("The End Depends Upon the Beginning") Youth From Every Quarter Knowledge and Goodness , address = 180 Main Street , city = Andover , state = Ma ...

Andover, Massachusetts Andover is a town in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States. It was settled in 1642 and incorporated in 1646."Andover" in ''The New Encyclopædia Britannica''. Chicago: Encyclopædia Britannica Inc., 15th ed., 1992, Vol. 1, p. 387. As of th ...

. After graduation in August 1879, Richards moved west to

Cheyenne, Wyoming Cheyenne ( or ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Wyoming, as well as the county seat of Laramie County, with 65,132 residents, per the 2020 US Census. It is the principal city of the Cheyenne metropolitan statistical ...

to recover his health in the outdoors, a prescription similar to that given later-President

Theodore Roosevelt Theodore Roosevelt Jr. ( ; October 27, 1858 – January 6, 1919), often referred to as Teddy or by his initials, T. R., was an American politician, statesman, soldier, conservationist, naturalist, historian, and writer who served as the 26t ...

. Bartlett Richards, however, became more deeply involved in the cattle business, and elected to remain in Wyoming rather than return to the East. By the time the year was over, he had purchased 1000 head of cattle and established the Ship Wheel Ranch on the Belle Fourche River in northeast Wyoming.

Career

Richards quickly became involved with

ranch A ranch (from es, rancho/Mexican Spanish) is an area of land, including various structures, given primarily to ranching, the practice of raising grazing livestock such as cattle and sheep. It is a subtype of a farm. These terms are most often ...

ing activities. By 1881, he was managing three ranches in

Wyoming Wyoming () is a U.S. state, state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is bordered by Montana to the north and northwest, South Dakota and Nebraska to the east, Idaho to the west, Utah to the south ...

and a year later was put in charge of Lakotah and Rocky Mountain Cattle Companies. In 1883, representing

Abram Stevens Hewitt Abram Stevens Hewitt (July 31, 1822January 18, 1903) was an American politician, educator, ironmaking industrialist, and lawyer who was mayor of New York City for two years from 1887–1888. He also twice served as a U.S. Congressman from an ...

, Richards took over the Bronson Ranch (which was renamed the Lower 33) in Sioux County,

Nebraska Nebraska () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by South Dakota to the north; Iowa to the east and Missouri to the southeast, both across the Missouri River; Kansas to the south; Colorado to the southwe ...

. In 1885, Richard's elder brother, DeForest Richards, moved west to open a bank in the

boomtown A boomtown is a community that undergoes sudden and rapid population and economic growth, or that is started from scratch. The growth is normally attributed to the nearby discovery of a precious resource such as gold, silver, or oil, although ...

of Chadron, Nebraska, which had just been reached by the

Fremont, Elkhorn and Missouri Valley Railroad The Fremont, Elkhorn and Missouri Valley Railroad (FE&MV), sometimes called "the Elkhorn," was a railroad established in 1869 in the state of Nebraska in the Midwestern United States. About The company constructed several lines in Nebraska, inclu ...

. That year, Congress also passed the Van Wyck fence law, which prohibited fencing the public domain. Bartlett was named vice president of the

bank A bank is a financial institution that accepts deposits from the public and creates a demand deposit while simultaneously making loans. Lending activities can be directly performed by the bank or indirectly through capital markets. Because ...

and in 1887 became president of Chadron's First National Bank, in addition to his ranching activities. Despite the anti-fencing law, the Richards brothers fenced in vast acreage with

barbed wire A close-up view of a barbed wire Roll of modern agricultural barbed wire Barbed wire, also known as barb wire, is a type of steel fencing wire constructed with sharp edges or points arranged at intervals along the strands. Its primary use is t ...

. DeForest Richards controlled about a half million acres and Bartlett Richards had nearly 300 miles of fencing on government lands (in effect securing another half million acres) by 1899. His Nebraska Land and Feeding Co. had fenced in an area equivalent to four times the state of Rhode Island by 1902. Jarvis Richards fenced in Colorado acreage in addition to helping his brothers with their operations. Bartlett Richards noted to fellow cattlemen in February 1902 that over 6 million acres of federal land had been fenced and 350,000 head of cattle were fattening behind those fences, and estimated the land and cattle were worth about $18 million. Richards proposed to legalize these takings by having Congress pass a Lease bill. However, President Theodore Roosevelt (either despite or because of his experience as a cattleman) vetoed it. He also sent John Mosby to remove the fences. Many of Richard's fences supposedly protected homesteads of soldiers' widows, based on fraudulent documentation. Mosby's Colorado methods failed, however, since the Omaha grand jury refused to authorize an indictment against Richards or anyone but nonresident agent W. R. Lesser. Mosby was recalled to Washington to appease Nebraska's Senators, but other attorneys were sent out, who secured indictments. Richards and his English brother in law William G. Comstock were convicted in 1905 despite their argument that the government land hadn't been surveyed. The local judge sentenced them to $300 fine apiece and six hours in custody, which they spent celebrating at the

Omaha Omaha ( ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Nebraska and the county seat of Douglas County. Omaha is in the Midwestern United States on the Missouri River, about north of the mouth of the Platte River. The nation's 39th-largest city ...

Cattlemen's Club, and which led President Roosevelt to fire both the U.S. attorney and U.S. Marshall. The next year Richards and Comstock were indicted on a new charge of conspiracy to deprive the government of public land, convicted and fined $1,500 fines as well as sentenced to a year in jail. After three years of appeals, the convictions and sentences were upheld, so they were sent to prison in

Hastings, Nebraska Hastings is a List of cities in Nebraska, city and the county seat of Adams County, Nebraska, Adams County, Nebraska, United States. The population was 25,152 at the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census. It is known as the town where Kool-Aid ...

for one year beginning in 1911. Richards was also involved with at least nine other banks in Nebraska and Wyoming, serving as

stockholder A shareholder (in the United States often referred to as stockholder) of a corporation is an individual or legal entity (such as another corporation, a body politic, a trust or partnership) that is registered by the corporation as the legal owner ...

, vice president, and president. Richards also continued to operate the Lower 33 and Ox Yoke Ranches in Nebraska, including the Spade Ranch empire.

Death and legacy

Richards died in the hospital at

in 1911, a month before his sentence would have been completed. His body was returned to Vermont for burial. The Nebraska Historical Society has microfilm relating to him and his cattle operations. In 1970, he was inducted into the

Hall of Great Westerners The Hall of Great Westerners was established by the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum in 1958. Located in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, U.S., the Hall was created to celebrate the contributions of more than 200 men and women of the American W ...

of the

National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum The National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum is a museum in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, United States, with more than 28,000 American West, Western and Native Americans in the United States, American Indian art works and Artifact (archaeology), ar ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Richards, Bartlett 1862 births 1911 deaths People from Dawes County, Nebraska People from Weathersfield, Vermont Ranchers from Wyoming Ranchers from Nebraska American cattlemen

Early and family life

Career

Death and legacy

See also

References