William Richardson (May 8, 1839 – March 31, 1914) was an American

politician A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking, a ...

and

lawyer A lawyer is a person who practices law. The role of a lawyer varies greatly across different legal jurisdictions. A lawyer can be classified as an advocate, attorney, barrister, canon lawyer, civil law notary, counsel, counselor, solic ...

. Born in

Athens, Alabama Athens is a city in and the county seat of Limestone County, in the U.S. state of Alabama; it is included in the Huntsville-Decatur-Albertville, AL Combined Statistical Area. As of the 2010 census, the population of the city is 21,897. Histo ...

to William Richardson and Anne Davis, Richardson served in the

Civil War A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...

, fighting for the Confederacy.

Civil War

Richardson enlisted in Co. K, 50th Regiment Alabama Infantry and was wounded in the battle of Shiloh and was taken prisoner. He escaped from prison, was caught, and about to be shot as a spy at

Murfreesboro Murfreesboro is a city in and county seat of Rutherford County, Tennessee, United States. The population was 152,769 according to the 2020 census, up from 108,755 residents certified in 2010. Murfreesboro is located in the Nashville metropol ...

when "on the morning air there came to our ears with heartfelt welcome the famous rebel yell," and General Forrest with his "critter company" rescued him. This account is given in Andrew Nelson Lytle's ''Bedford Forrest and His Horse Critters''. William then joined Company E of the 50th Alabama Infantry Regiment, and was again wounded at

Chickamauga Chickamauga may refer to: Entertainment * "Chickamauga", an 1889 short story by American author Ambrose Bierce * "Chickamauga", a 1937 short story by Thomas Wolfe * "Chickamauga", a song by Uncle Tupelo from their 1993 album ''Anodyne'' * ''Chic ...

. He was paroled in April 1865 in

Marietta, Georgia Marietta is a city in and the county seat of Cobb County, Georgia, United States. At the 2020 census, the city had a population of 60,972. The 2019 estimate was 60,867, making it one of Atlanta's largest suburbs. Marietta is the fourth largest ...

Political office

After the war, Richardson returned to Limestone County and served in the

Alabama House of Representatives The Alabama State House of Representatives is the lower house of the Alabama Legislature, the state legislature of state of Alabama. The House is composed of 105 members representing an equal number of districts, with each constituency contai ...

between 1865 and 1867 from that district. He studied law and was admitted to the bar at Huntsville in 1867. Between 1875 and 1886, he served as judge of the

probate Probate is the judicial process whereby a will is "proved" in a court of law and accepted as a valid public document that is the true last testament of the deceased, or whereby the estate is settled according to the laws of intestacy in the sta ...

and county courts of Madison County. Richardson played a major role in the election of George Smith Houston as governor the next year. He was a delegate to the Democratic National Convention in 1904. He was elected as a Democrat to the Fifty-sixth congress to fill the vacancy caused by the resignation of

Joseph Wheeler Joseph "Fighting Joe" Wheeler (September 10, 1836 – January 25, 1906) was an American military commander and politician. He was a cavalry general in the Confederate States Army in the 1860s during the American Civil War, and then a general in ...

. He was reelected to the Fifty-seventh and to the six succeeding Congresses. He served until his death.

Personal life

Richardson married his cousin, Elizabeth Rucker, of Lynchburg, Virginia in 1872, and they were the parents of five children. Richardson was often troublesome to the

Union Union commonly refers to: * Trade union, an organization of workers * Union (set theory), in mathematics, a fundamental operation on sets Union may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Music * Union (band), an American rock group ** ''Un ...

victors after the Civil War. He was wanted by the North, but was never caught. Once, he

tarred and feathered Tarring and feathering is a form of public torture and punishment used to enforce unofficial justice or revenge. It was used in feudal Europe and its colonies in the early modern period, as well as the early American frontier, mostly as a t ...

a Union

carpetbagger In the history of the United States, carpetbagger is a largely historical term used by Southerners to describe opportunistic Northerners who came to the Southern states after the American Civil War, who were perceived to be exploiting the lo ...

, tied him to his horse, and dragged him through the streets of Huntsville. He later ran to a cave and hid for about a year. Soon after, he was elected to the House. Richardson was also very large. He was considered a

giant In folklore, giants (from Ancient Greek: '' gigas'', cognate giga-) are beings of human-like appearance, but are at times prodigious in size and strength or bear an otherwise notable appearance. The word ''giant'' is first attested in 1297 fr ...

by many people of the time period.

Portraits A portrait is a painting, photograph, sculpture, or other artistic representation of a person, in which the face and its expressions are predominant. The intent is to display the likeness, personality, and even the mood of the person. For this re ...

of him exist which depict him seated on a large horse with his feet nearly touching the ground. Though his actual height was never recorded, he was said to be somewhere between 6' 9" and 7' 2". Richardson died on March 31, 1914 in

Atlantic City, New Jersey Atlantic City, often known by its initials A.C., is a coastal resort city in Atlantic County, New Jersey, United States. The city is known for its casinos, boardwalk, and beaches. In 2020, the city had a population of 38,497.

, where he had gone for his health, and is buried in Maple Hill Cemetery in Huntsville.Congressional Biography.

Notes

References

Retrieved on 2008-02-14 * Kestenbaum, Lawrence
The Political Graveyard
Accessed December 5, 2006.

External links