Career
Born in 1835 in New York City, Richards was still living in the state of New York when he joined the Navy. He served during the Civil War as a quartermaster on the United States Ship Pensacola. At the Battle of Forts Jackson and Saint Philip near New Orleans on April 24, 1862, he successfully steered his ship through obstacles placed in the Mississippi River by the Confederates.
Richards died on January 7, 1894, at age 58 or 59 and was buried in Brooklyn, New York City.
