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Albert Norton Richards

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The Honourable
Albert Norton Richards
QC
Albert Norton Richards
Source: Library and Archives Canada
2nd Lieutenant Governor of British Columbia
In office
June 27, 1876 – June 21, 1881
MonarchVictoria
Governors GeneralThe Earl of Dufferin
Marquess of Lorne
PremierAndrew Charles Elliott
George Anthony Walkem
Preceded byJoseph Trutch
Succeeded byClement Francis Cornwall
Personal details
Born(1821-12-08)December 8, 1821
Brockville, Ontario, Canada
DiedMarch 6, 1897(1897-03-06) (aged 75)
Victoria, British Columbia, Canada
Political partyLiberal
Spouses
Frances Chaffey
​
(m. 1849)​
Ellen Chaffey Chislett
​
​
(m. 1854)​
Occupationlawyer
ProfessionPolitician

Albert Norton Richards, QC (December 8, 1821 – March 6, 1897) was a Canadian lawyer and political figure. He represented Leeds South in the House of Commons of Canada as a Liberal member from 1872 to 1874. He served as the second Lieutenant Governor of British Columbia from 1876 to 1881.[1]

He was born in Brockville in Upper Canada in 1821,[1] the son of Stephen Richards and Phoebe Buell.[2] He studied law with his brother William Buell Richards and was called to the bar in 1848.[3] Richards practised law in Brockville and in Victoria, British Columbia.[2] He was one of the founders of what is now the Vancouver-based law firm of Richards Buell Sutton.[4]

In 1863, he was appointed Queen's Counsel. He was elected to the 8th Parliament of the Province of Canada in 1863, but was defeated in 1864 when he accepted the post of Solicitor General for Canada West and so was required to run again for the same seat.[3] In 1867, he was narrowly defeated by John Willoughby Crawford in Leeds South but was elected in 1872. In 1869, he was named Attorney General in the provisional government of the Northwest but was turned back by the rebels at Pembina.[1] In 1874, he moved to British Columbia.[3] On June 27, 1876, he was sworn in as Lieutenant Governor there. After his term in this office, he returned to Ontario for three years, then went back to Victoria where he practised law, dying in Victoria in 1897.[3] Richards served as Treasurer (chief elected officer) of the Law Society of British Columbia from 1889 to 1892 and from 1894 to 1897.[5]

Richards was married twice: to Frances Chaffey in 1849 and to Ellen Chaffey Chislett in 1854.[2] The painter Frances Richards (1852–1934) was his daughter from his first marriage.[6]

Richards Street in Vancouver is named after him.

1867 Canadian federal election: Leeds South
Party Candidate Votes %
Conservative John Willoughby Crawford 1,393 50.53
Unknown Albert Norton Richards 1,364 49.47
1872 Canadian federal election: Leeds South
Party Candidate Votes %
Liberal Albert Norton Richards 1,270 50.24
Unknown George Morton 1,258 49.76

References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b c Albert Norton Richards – Parliament of Canada biography
  2. ^ a b c Johnson, J.K. (1968). The Canadian Directory of Parliament 1867-1967. Public Archives of Canada.
  3. ^ a b c d History of Leeds and Grenville, TWH Leavitt (1879) Archived 2006-11-11 at the Wayback Machine
  4. ^ Richards Buell Sutton multi-service law firm based in Vancouver, British Columbia Canada
  5. ^ "Presidents and Treasurers, 1869 to present | The Law Society of British Columbia". www.lawsociety.bc.ca. Retrieved 2023-07-09.
  6. ^ Bishop, Carl (2007). "The Picture of Oscar Wilde: The Celebrated Aesthete Gazed At the Portrait Frances Richards Had Painted of Him. Suddenly, He Had a Brilliant Idea". Gale Student Resources in Context. Retrieved 29 November 2016.
Parliament of Canada
Preceded by Member of Parliament from Leeds South
1872-1874 		Succeeded by
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