Van Rensselaer Richmond (January 1812 in Preston,

Chenango County, New York Chenango County is a County (United States), county located in the south-central section U.S. state of New York (state), New York. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 47,220. Its county seat is Norwich, New York ...

– November 20, 1883 in

Lyons Lyon,, ; Occitan: ''Lion'', hist. ''Lionés'' also spelled in English as Lyons, is the third-largest city and second-largest metropolitan area of France. It is located at the confluence of the rivers Rhône and Saône, to the northwest of th ...

Wayne County, New York Wayne County is a county in the U.S. state of New York. As of the 2020 Census, the population was 91,283. The county seat is Lyons. The name honors General Anthony Wayne, an American Revolutionary War hero and American statesman. Wayne Coun ...

) was an American

civil engineer A civil engineer is a person who practices civil engineering – the application of planning, designing, constructing, maintaining, and operating infrastructure while protecting the public and environmental health, as well as improving existing ...

and politician from New York.

Life

He was the son of Oliver Richmond (d. 1853). He was educated at the

Oxford Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...

Academy, and in 1834 began work as a

chainman Surveying or land surveying is the technique, profession, art, and science of determining the land, terrestrial Two-dimensional space#In geometry, two-dimensional or Three-dimensional space#In Euclidean geometry, three-dimensional positions of ...

at the construction of the

Chenango Canal The Chenango Canal was a towpath canal in central New York in the United States which linked the Susquehanna River to the Erie Canal. Built and operated in the mid-19th century, it was 97 miles long and for much of its course followed the Chenan ...

. In 1837 he married Anna A. Dennison (d. 1854), and they had four children. In 1837, he was appointed Resident Engineer of the

Erie Canal The Erie Canal is a historic canal in upstate New York that runs east-west between the Hudson River and Lake Erie. Completed in 1825, the canal was the first navigable waterway connecting the Atlantic Ocean to the Great Lakes, vastly reducing t ...

Lyons, New York Lyons is a town in Wayne County, New York, United States. The population was 5,682 at the 2010 census. It is named after Lyon, France.

. In 1842, he was appointed Division Engineer of the Middle Division of the State Canals at

Syracuse Syracuse may refer to: Places Italy *Syracuse, Sicily, or spelled as ''Siracusa'' *Province of Syracuse United States *Syracuse, New York **East Syracuse, New York **North Syracuse, New York *Syracuse, Indiana * Syracuse, Kansas *Syracuse, Miss ...

. In 1848, he resigned and began to work for the

Oswego and Syracuse Railroad The Oswego and Syracuse Railroad was formed April 29, 1839, and the route was surveyed during the summer of that year. The Company was fully organized March 25, 1847. The road was opened on May 14, 1848, and ran a total distance of from Syracuse, ...

, but soon after returned to canal work as Chief Engineer of the construction of the canal from

Jordan, New York Jordan is a village in Onondaga County, New York, United States. The population was 1,368 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Syracuse Metropolitan Statistical Area. It was named after the Jordan River. Jordan is located in the northwest part ...

to the Cayuga Marshes. In 1850 he left the canal works and became Division Engineer of the

Rochester and Syracuse Railroad The Rochester and Syracuse Railroad was incorporated on August 1, 1850. The Auburn and Rochester Railroad Company was incorporated May 13, 1836, and opened in August 1841. The Auburn and Syracuse Railroad Company was incorporated May 1, 1834, an ...

. In 1852, he was appointed again Division Engineer of the Middle Division of the State Canals by

William J. McAlpine William Jarvis McAlpine (April 30, 1812 – February 16, 1890) was an American civil engineer and politician from New York. He was New York State Engineer and Surveyor from 1852 to 1853. Life William J. McAlpine was born in New York City, the ...

, was maintained in office by Whig State Engineer John T. Clark, but was removed in 1856 by the American Party majority of the Canal Board. He was

New York State Engineer and Surveyor New is an adjective referring to something recently made, discovered, or created. New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz Albums and EPs * ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 * ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator, ...

from 1858 to 1861, and from 1868 to 1871, elected four times on the Democratic ticket. He died from a "sudden stroke of

apoplexy Apoplexy () is rupture of an internal organ and the accompanying symptoms. The term formerly referred to what is now called a stroke. Nowadays, health care professionals do not use the term, but instead specify the anatomic location of the bleedi ...

." on November 20, 1883 in

Lyons, New York Lyons is a town in Wayne County, New York, United States. The population was 5,682 at the 2010 census. It is named after Lyon, France.

. His son Dennison Richmond (ca. 1842-1888) was also Division Engineer of the Middle Division.

References

''Biographical Sketches of the State Officers and Members of the Legislature in the State of New York in 1859'' by Wm. D. Murphy (pages 29ff; C. Van Benthuysen, Albany NY, 1859) {{DEFAULTSORT:Richmond, Van Rensselaer 1812 births 1883 deaths New York State Engineers and Surveyors People from Chenango County, New York People from Lyons, New York New York (state) Democrats