John Richardson (September 30, 1886 – January 24, 1976) was an American attorney and political figure from Massachusetts.

Early life

Richardson was born on September 30, 1886, in

Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts Chestnut Hill is an affluent New England village located west of downtown Boston, Massachusetts, United States. Like all Massachusetts villages, Chestnut Hill is located within one or more incorporated municipal entities. It is located partia ...

, to John and Louisa Storrow (Cabot) Richardson. He attended

Noble and Greenough School The Noble and Greenough School, commonly known as Nobles, is a coeducational, nonsectarian day and five-day boarding school for students in grades seven through twelve. It is near Boston on a campus that borders the Charles River in Dedham, Massa ...

Harvard College Harvard College is the undergraduate college of Harvard University, an Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636, Harvard College is the original school of Harvard University, the oldest institution of higher lea ...

(A.B. 1908), and

Harvard Law School Harvard Law School (Harvard Law or HLS) is the law school of Harvard University, a private research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1817, it is the oldest continuously operating law school in the United States. Each class ...

(LL.B. 1911). While at Harvard, Richardson was captain of the Harvard crew and was elected to the Harvard Varsity Club's Hall of Fame. On September 7, 1909, Richardson married Hope Hemenway, the daughter of

Augustus Caesar Augustus (born Gaius Octavius; 23 September 63 BC – 19 August AD 14), also known as Octavian, was the first Roman emperor; he reigned from 27 BC until his death in AD 14. He is known for being the founder of the Roman Pri ...

and

Harriet Hemenway Harriet Lawrence Hemenway (1858–1960) was a Boston socialite who cofounded the Massachusetts Audubon Society with Minna B. Hall. Hemenway was the wife of Augustus Hemenway. During the Gilded Age, it became fashionable for women to wear hats ...

. They had five children, including John Richardson, Jr., who was United States Assistant Secretary of State for Educational and Cultural Affairs from 1969 to 1977.

Legal career

From 1911 until his retirement 1970s, Richardson worked for the Boston law firm of

Ropes & Gray Ropes & Gray LLP is a global law firm with 13 offices located in the United States, Asia and Europe. The firm has more than 1,500 lawyers and professionals worldwide, and its clients include corporations and financial institutions, government agen ...

. For most of that time he specialized in corporate and trustee work and was also responsible for hiring young lawyers to join the firm.

Military service

Richardson served in the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...

during

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, rising from the rank to private to captain. He also worked in the

United States Food Administration The United States Food Administration (1917–1920) was an independent Federal agency that controlled the production, distribution and conservation of food in the U.S. during the nation's participation in World War I. It was established to preve ...

under the direction of

Herbert Hoover Herbert Clark Hoover (August 10, 1874 – October 20, 1964) was an American politician who served as the 31st president of the United States from 1929 to 1933 and a member of the Republican Party, holding office during the onset of the Gr ...

Politics

Richardson worked for Herbert Hoover's nomination for

President of the United States The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States of America. The president directs the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United Stat ...

at the 1920, 1924, and

1928 Republican National Convention The 1928 Republican National Convention was held at Convention Hall in Kansas City, Missouri, from June 12 to June 15, 1928. Because President Coolidge had announced unexpectedly he would not run for re-election in 1928, Commerce Secretary Her ...

s. When White House Press Secretary George E. Akerson resigned in 1931, Richardson was considered a likely successor for the position, however he chose to work for Hoover's reelection campaign instead. On June 13, 1932, Richardson was elected to the

Republican National Committee The Republican National Committee (RNC) is a U.S. political committee that assists the Republican Party of the United States. It is responsible for developing and promoting the Republican brand and political platform, as well as assisting in fu ...

over former

United States Senator The United States Senate is the Upper house, upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the United States House of Representatives, House of Representatives being the Lower house, lower chamber. Together they compose the national Bica ...

and Republican National Committee Chairman

William M. Butler William Morgan Butler (January 29, 1861March 29, 1937) was a lawyer and legislator for the State of Massachusetts, and a United States Senator. Biography Butler was born in New Bedford, Massachusetts, where he attended the public school and stud ...

by a vote of 18 to 15. Richardson's support came from by the younger members of the party, led by

President of the Massachusetts Senate The president of the Massachusetts Senate is the presiding officer. Unlike the United States Congress, in which the vice president of the United States is the ''ex officio'' president of the United States Senate, in Massachusetts, the president of ...

Gaspar G. Bacon Gaspar Griswold Bacon, Sr. (March 7, 1886 – December 25, 1947) served on the board of overseers of Harvard University, as the President of the Massachusetts Senate from 1929 to 1932 and as the 51st Lieutenant Governor of Massachusetts, lieutena ...

Speaker of the Massachusetts House of Representatives This is a list of speakers of the Massachusetts House of Representatives. The Speaker of the House presides over the House of Representatives. The Speaker is elected by the majority party caucus followed by confirmation of the full House through ...

Leverett Saltonstall Leverett A. Saltonstall (September 1, 1892June 17, 1979) was an American lawyer and politician from Massachusetts. He served three two-year terms as the List of Governors of Massachusetts, 55th Governor of Massachusetts, and for more than twent ...

, Carl A. Terry, and

Christian Herter Christian Archibald Herter (March 28, 1895December 30, 1966) was an American diplomat and Republican politician who was the 59th Governor of Massachusetts from 1953 to 1957 and United States Secretary of State from 1959 to 1961. His moderate t ...

. At the 1932 Republican National Convention, Richardson and the Massachusetts delegation supported Alvan T. Fuller for Vice President. Vice President

Charles Curtis Charles Curtis (January 25, 1860 – February 8, 1936) was an American attorney and Republican politician from Kansas who served as the 31st vice president of the United States from 1929 to 1933 under Herbert Hoover. He had served as the Sena ...

was renominated. In 1933, the

Massachusetts Republican Party The Massachusetts Republican Party (MassGOP) is the Massachusetts branch of the U.S. Republican Party. In accordance with Massachusetts General Laws Chapter 52, the party is governed by a state committee which consists of one man and one woma ...

became split over the position of chairman of the Republican State Committee. Richardson supported Carl A. Terry, who defeated Charles Hiller Innes. The following year, Richardson supported George G. Tarbell to succeed Terry as chairman. In 1936, Richardson chose not to run for reelection and Congressman Joseph W. Martin was elected unopposed to succeed him as the Massachusetts member of the Republican National Committee.

Other work and death

From 1926 to 1968, Richardson served as president of the Boston

Better Business Bureau Better Business Bureau (BBB) is a private, 501(c)(6) nonprofit organization founded in 1912. BBB's self-described mission is to focus on advancing marketplace trust, consisting of 97 independently incorporated local BBB organizations in the Unit ...

. He also served as moderator of the Canton town meeting for over 40 years and was chairman of the board of trustees of the Noble and Greenough School. Richardson died on January 24, 1976, at his home in Canton.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Richardson, John 1886 births 1976 deaths United States Army personnel of World War I Harvard Law School alumni Massachusetts lawyers Massachusetts Republicans Republican National Committee members United States Army officers 20th-century American lawyers