Gabriel Richard (politician)

Gabriel Richard

Gabriel Richard (born October 15, 1767 in Saintes , France , †  September 13, 1832 in Detroit , Michigan Territory ) was an American politician . Between 1823 and 1825 he represented the Michigan Territory as a delegate in the US House of Representatives .

Career

Born in what is now the Charente-Maritime department , Gabriel Richard grew up in France during the Ancien Régime . In 1784 he began to study Catholic theology in Angers ; on October 17, 1790 he was ordained a clergyman. In 1792 he left revolutionary France for the United States. There he first settled in Baltimore ( Maryland ), where he worked as a math teacher at St. Mary's College . Soon after, his bishop sent him to serve as a missionary to the Indians in the Northwest Territory . At times he lived in the area of ​​what is now the city of Kaskaskia in Illinois . Later he also did missionary work in Detroit. There he became a leading religious figure. In 1817 Richard was a co-founder of the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor , and was vice president from 1817 to 1821. After that he was the curator of this university until his death. He also published the first newspapers in his new home, some in French. Richard supported the British-American War in 1812 . In the meantime he was captured by the British during the war.

In addition to these activities, Gabriel Richard was also politically active. In the congressional elections of 1822 he was elected as a delegate of the Michigan Territory to the US House of Representatives in Washington , where he succeeded Solomon Sibley on March 4, 1823 . Since he was defeated in the following elections in 1824 Austin Eli Wing , he was only able to complete one term in Congress until March 3, 1825 . After leaving the US House of Representatives, Richard returned to his church duties. He was appointed vicar general. He died of cholera in Detroit on September 13, 1832 .

Web links

• Gabriel Richard (politician) in the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress (English)

• Gabriel Richard in the database of Find a Grave (English)