Joseph Richardson, Jr. (December 4, 1752 – March 11, 1831), was a noted American

silversmith A silversmith is a metalworker who crafts objects from silver. The terms ''silversmith'' and ''goldsmith'' are not exact synonyms, as the techniques, training, history, and guilds are (or were, at least) largely the same but differed in that t ...

, active in

Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

. Richardson was born in Philadelphia, the son of silversmith Joseph Richardson Sr. (1711–1784) and grandson of noted silversmith, Francis Richardson II (November 25, 1684, New York City – August 17, 1729, Philadelphia). He apprenticed about 1765 to his father, then joined his shop on Front Street, between Chestnut and Walnut Streets. On June 15, 1780, he married Ruth Hoskins at

Burlington, New Jersey Burlington is a City (New Jersey), city situated on the banks of the Delaware River in Burlington County, New Jersey, Burlington County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. It is a suburb of Philadelphia. As of the 2020 United States census, the c ...

. In 1784 he took over his father's business, then from 1785 to 1791 partnered with his brother, Nathaniel Richardson, as I. & N. RICHARDSON. On December 12, 1795,

George Washington George Washington (, 1799) was a Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father and the first president of the United States, serving from 1789 to 1797. As commander of the Continental Army, Washington led Patriot (American Revoluti ...

appointed him Assayer of the

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, which position he held until his death. From 1795 to 1802 he partnered with James Howell in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, as RICHARDSON & Co., from 1802 to 1810 worked solo, and ultimately sold his business to Howell. Richardson is best known for his Washington Indian Peace Medals, as he created some of the 1793 and all of the 1795 medals. This followed naturally from his earlier assistance to his father in the Friendly Association for Regaining and Preserving Peace with the Indians by Pacific Measures (founded 1755). Another notable commission was the teapot and waste bowl for which George Washington paid $44.55 in 1796. His works are collected in the

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, and

Winterthur Museum Winterthur Museum, Garden and Library is an American estate and museum in Winterthur, Delaware. Winterthur houses one of the richest collections of Americana in the United States. The museum and estate were the home of Henry Francis du Pont ...

References

* ''Joseph Richardson and family, Philadelphia silversmiths'', Martha Gandy Fales, Historical Society of Pennsylvania, 1974.
"Joseph Richardson"
American Silversmiths.

Winterthur Museum. * ''American Silversmiths and Their Marks: The Definitive (1948) Edition'', Stephen G. C. Ensko, Courier Corporation, 2012, page 113. * "Indian Trade Silver Ornaments Made by Joseph Richardson, Jr.", Harrold E. Gillingham, in ''The Pennsylvania Magazine of History and Biography'', Vol. 67, No. 1 (Jan., 1943), pp. 83–91. * ''Early American silver and its makers'', Jane Bentley, Mayflower Books, 1979, page 42. * ''Kovels' American Silver Marks'', Ralph M. Kovel, Crown Publishers, 1989, page 312. * ''American Silver'', John Marshall Phillips, Courier Corporation, 2012. * ''Indian Culture and European Trade Goods: The Archaeology of the Historic Period in the Western Great Lakes Region'', George Irving Quimby, University of Wisconsin Press, 1966, page 96.
"Joseph Richardson business records, 1733–1831"
Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution. {{DEFAULTSORT:Richardson Jr., Joseph American silversmiths 1752 births 1831 deaths