John Peter Richardson III (September 25, 1831 – July 6, 1899) was the 83rd

governor of South Carolina The governor of South Carolina is the head of government of South Carolina. The governor is the '' ex officio'' commander-in-chief of the National Guard when not called into federal service. The governor's responsibilities include making year ...

from 1886 to 1890. Richardson was born in Clarendon County,

South Carolina )''Animis opibusque parati'' ( for, , Latin, Prepared in mind and resources, links=no) , anthem = " Carolina";" South Carolina On My Mind" , Former = Province of South Carolina , seat = Columbia , LargestCity = Charleston , LargestMetro = ...

John Peter Richardson II John Peter Richardson II (April 14, 1801January 24, 1864) was the 59th Governor of South Carolina from 1840 to 1842. Early life and career Richardson was son of John Peter Richardson and Floride Bonneau Peyre, and grandson of General Richard ...

, a former

Governor of South Carolina The governor of South Carolina is the head of government of South Carolina. The governor is the '' ex officio'' commander-in-chief of the National Guard when not called into federal service. The governor's responsibilities include making year ...

, and Juliana Augusta Manning. After graduating from South Carolina College in 1849, Richardson managed Elmswood Plantation in Clarendon County. He was also elected to the

South Carolina House of Representatives The South Carolina House of Representatives is the lower house of the South Carolina General Assembly. It consists of 124 representatives elected to two-year terms at the same time as U.S. congressional elections. Unlike many legislatures, seati ...

during

antebellum Antebellum, Latin for "before war", may refer to: United States history * Antebellum South, the pre-American Civil War period in the Southern United States ** Antebellum Georgia ** Antebellum South Carolina ** Antebellum Virginia * Antebellum ...

South Carolina. With the outbreak of the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states th ...

, Richardson enlisted in the

Confederate Army The Confederate States Army, also called the Confederate Army or the Southern Army, was the military land force of the Confederate States of America (commonly referred to as the Confederacy) during the American Civil War (1861–1865), fighting ...

in 1862 and was on the staff of

Brigadier General Brigadier general or Brigade general is a military rank used in many countries. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries. The rank is usually above a colonel, and below a major general or divisional general. When appointed ...

James Cantey James Cantey (December 30, 1818 – June 30, 1874) was a Confederate States Army brigadier general during the American Civil War. He was a lawyer, slave owner, state legislator in South Carolina and officer in the Mexican–American War, and a s ...

until the end of the war. After which, he was elected in 1865 to the

and later that year to the

South Carolina Senate The South Carolina Senate is the upper house of the South Carolina General Assembly, the lower house being the South Carolina House of Representatives. It consists of 46 senators elected from single member districts for four-year terms at the sa ...

. Richardson was not active in politics during the

Reconstruction era The Reconstruction era was a period in American history following the American Civil War (1861–1865) and lasting until approximately the Compromise of 1877. During Reconstruction, attempts were made to rebuild the country after the bloo ...

, however in 1880 he returned as state

Treasurer A treasurer is the person responsible for running the treasury of an organization. The significant core functions of a corporate treasurer include cash and liquidity management, risk management, and corporate finance. Government The treasury o ...

. In 1886, Richardson was endorsed by Clarendon County Democrats for the candidacy of governor. The recently formed Farmers' Association has significant influence in Richardson's nomination for candidacy. Richardson won the nomination for governorship, and subsequently went on to win the general election. He was

inaugurated In government and politics, inauguration is the process of swearing a person into office and thus making that person the incumbent. Such an inauguration commonly occurs through a formal ceremony or special event, which may also include an inaugu ...

as governor on November 30, 1886. During his second term as governor, Richardson established

Clemson College Clemson University () is a public land-grant research university in Clemson, South Carolina. Founded in 1889, Clemson is the second-largest university in the student population in South Carolina. For the fall 2019 semester, the university enro ...

, now known as Clemson University. Richardson initially opposed created Clemson because he thought that it would siphon funds away from the already existing University of South Carolina, however, he eventually relented in November 1889 when the college was established. On July 6, 1899, Richardson died in Columbia and was buried at Old Quaker Cemetery in Camden.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Richardson III, John Peter 1831 births 1899 deaths University of South Carolina alumni Democratic Party governors of South Carolina University of South Carolina trustees 19th-century American politicians