Rees Griffith Richards (July 22, 1842 – February 10, 1917) was an American Republican politician who served as the 16th lieutenant governor of Ohio from 1882 to 1884.

Early life

Rees G. Richards was born July 22, 1842 near Swansea, Wales, and lived there until age 10. His family then moved to Ontario, Canada before removing to Tioga County, Pennsylvania.

Civil War

At the outbreak of the

U.S. 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 ...

, he enlisted as a first sergeant in Company G of the 45th Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry September 18, 1861. He was promoted to second lieutenant July 31, 1862, to captain September 14, 1862. He re-enlisted as a veteran January 1, 1864, and was captured at the

Crater Crater may refer to: Landforms *Impact crater, a depression caused by two celestial bodies impacting each other, such as a meteorite hitting a planet *Explosion crater, a hole formed in the ground produced by an explosion near or below the surfac ...

, July 30, 1864. He was held prisoner at Asylum Prison Camp near

Charleston, South Carolina Charleston is the largest city in the U.S. state of South Carolina, the county seat of Charleston County, and the principal city in the Charleston–North Charleston metropolitan area. The city lies just south of the geographical midpoint o ...

until his escape February 16, 1865. He and two colleagues made it to Union lines at Chattanooga, Tennessee March 16, 1865. He was appointed brigade inspector May 11, 1865, and mustered out July 17, 1865. Rees G Richards and other escapees March 17 1865

Rees G Richards and other escapees March 17 1865

Political

After the war, he moved to Youngstown, Ohio and engaged in mercantile business for two years, then six years in

Irondale, Ohio Irondale is a village in northern Jefferson County, Ohio, United States. The population was 326 at the 2020 census. It is part of the Weirton–Steubenville metropolitan area. History Irondale was originally known as Pottsdale, for Samuel Potts ...

. In 1873, and again in 1875, he was elected to represent Jefferson County, Ohio in the Ohio House of Representatives at the 61st and 62nd General Assemblies In 1876 he was admitted to the bar. He represented the 22nd district in the

Ohio Senate The Ohio Senate is the upper house of the Ohio General Assembly. The State Senate, which meets in the Ohio Statehouse in Columbus, first convened in 1803. Senators are elected for four year terms, staggered every two years such that half of the se ...

in the 63rd and 64th General Assemblies (1878–1881). In 1881, he defeated Democrat Edgar M. Johnson for election as Lieutenant Governor of Ohio, and could have had the nomination in 1883, had he wanted it. He was elected to two terms as Common Pleas Judge of Jefferson County while living in Steubenville, Ohio, starting in 1902, and died February 10, 1917.

Personal

Richards married Catherine C. Rees of Tioga County, Pennsylvania on November 22, 1865, and Elizabeth Johnson of Jefferson County, Ohio on September 25, 1894, who had one daughter. Richards was a

Freemason Freemasonry or Masonry refers to fraternal organisations that trace their origins to the local guilds of stonemasons that, from the end of the 13th century, regulated the qualifications of stonemasons and their interaction with authorities ...

and a Presbyterian by faith. He was a member of the Grand Army of the Republic and the Military Order of the Loyal Legion of the United States.

Notes

References

* * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Richards, Reese G. 1842 births 1917 deaths American Civil War prisoners of war Lieutenant Governors of Ohio Republican Party members of the Ohio House of Representatives Ohio lawyers Ohio state court judges People of Pennsylvania in the American Civil War Politicians from Steubenville, Ohio Politicians from Swansea People from Tioga County, Pennsylvania Presidents of the Ohio State Senate Republican Party Ohio state senators Union Army officers Welsh emigrants to the United States 19th-century American judges 19th-century American lawyers