Richard Bland

Richard Bland

Richard Bland (born May 6, 1710 in Orange County , Colony of Virginia , †  October 26, 1776 in Williamsburg , Virginia ) was an American politician . In 1774 and 1775 he was a delegate for Virginia in the Continental Congress .

Career

Richard Bland was an uncle of Congressman Theodorick Bland (1742-1790). His family were well respected in Virginia and were directly or indirectly related to many leading politicians. One of his cousins ​​was the future US President Thomas Jefferson . He attended public schools in his home country and then studied at the College of William & Mary and the University of Edinburgh in Scotland . He studied law and was admitted to the bar, but never practiced as such. He inherited the family farm at an early age, on which he spent most of his life.

Bland was a justice of the peace in his homeland and a member of the militia since 1739. Between 1742 and 1775 he sat in the House of Burgesses of Virginia. In the 1770s, after initial hesitation, he joined the revolutionary movement. In 1773 he was a member of the Committee of Correspondence Virginias; from 1774 to 1775 he sat in the Continental Congress. He was then re-elected to this body. However, he refused another term of office and did not accept the extended mandate. In 1775 and 1776 he was a delegate to the Virginia Revolutionary Conventions . In 1776 he was elected to the Virginia House of Representatives. He died on October 26th of the same year.

Web links

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

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