Van Rensselaer Richmond
Encyclopedia
Van Rensselaer Richmond was an American civil engineer
and politician from New York
.
Academy, and in 1834 began work as a chainman
at the construction of the Chenango Canal
. In 1837 he married Anna A. Dennison (d. 1854), and they had four children.
In 1837, he was appointed Resident Engineer of the Erie Canal
at Lyons, New York
. In 1842, he was appointed Division Engineer of the Middle Division of the State Canals at Syracuse, New York
. In 1848, he resigned and began to work for the Oswego and Syracuse Railroad
, but soon after returned to canal work as Chief Engineer of the construction of the canal from Jordan, New York
to the Cayuga Marshes. In 1850 he left the canal works and became Division Engineer of the Rochester and Syracuse Railroad
. In 1852, he was appointed again Division Engineer of the Middle Division of the State Canals by William J. McAlpine
, was maintained in office by Whig State Engineer John T. Clark
, but was removed in 1856 by the American Party
majority of the Canal Board.
He was New York State Engineer and Surveyor
from 1858 to 1861, and from 1868 to 1871, elected four times on the Democratic ticket.
He died from a "sudden stroke of apoplexy
".
His son Dennison Richmond (ca. 1842-1888) was also Division Engineer of the Middle Division.
Civil engineer
A civil engineer is a person who practices civil engineering; the application of planning, designing, constructing, maintaining, and operating infrastructures while protecting the public and environmental health, as well as improving existing infrastructures that have been neglected.Originally, a...
and politician from New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
.
Life
He was the son of Oliver Richmond (d. 1853). He was educated at the OxfordOxford, New York
Oxford is a town in Chenango County, New York, United States. The town contains a village named Oxford. Oxford is an interior town in the south-central part of the county, southwest of the City of Norwich. At the 2000 census the town population was 3,992...
Academy, and in 1834 began work as a chainman
Gunter's chain
Gunter's chain is a measuring device used for land survey. It was designed and introduced in 1620 by English clergyman and mathematician Edmund Gunter long before the development of the theodolite and other more sophisticated equipment, enabling plots of land to be accurately surveyed and plotted,...
at the construction of the Chenango Canal
Chenango Canal
The Chenango Canal was a towpath canal that was built and operated in the mid-19th century in Upstate New York in the United States. It was 97 miles long and for much of its course followed the Chenango River, from Binghamton on the south end to Utica on the north end...
. In 1837 he married Anna A. Dennison (d. 1854), and they had four children.
In 1837, he was appointed Resident Engineer of the Erie Canal
Erie Canal
The Erie Canal is a waterway in New York that runs about from Albany, New York, on the Hudson River to Buffalo, New York, at Lake Erie, completing a navigable water route from the Atlantic Ocean to the Great Lakes. The canal contains 36 locks and encompasses a total elevation differential of...
at Lyons, New York
Lyons, New York
Lyons, New York may refer to either of two places in Wayne County, New York, USA:* Lyons , New York* Lyons , New York...
. In 1842, he was appointed Division Engineer of the Middle Division of the State Canals at Syracuse, New York
Syracuse, New York
Syracuse is a city in and the county seat of Onondaga County, New York, United States, the largest U.S. city with the name "Syracuse", and the fifth most populous city in the state. At the 2010 census, the city population was 145,170, and its metropolitan area had a population of 742,603...
. In 1848, he resigned and began to work for the Oswego and Syracuse Railroad
Oswego and Syracuse Railroad
The Oswego and Syracuse Railroad was formed April 29, 1839, and the route was surveyed during the summer of that year. The Company was fully organized March 25, 1847. The road was opened on May 14, 1848, and ran a total distance of from Syracuse, New York to Oswego, New York...
, but soon after returned to canal work as Chief Engineer of the construction of the canal from Jordan, New York
Jordan, New York
Jordan is a village in Onondaga County, New York, United States. The population was 1,314 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Syracuse Metropolitan Statistical Area....
to the Cayuga Marshes. In 1850 he left the canal works and became Division Engineer of the Rochester and Syracuse Railroad
Rochester and Syracuse Railroad
The Rochester and Syracuse Railroad was incorporated on August 1, 1850 authorizing the consolidation of the Auburn and Rochester Railroad Company and the Auburn and Syracuse Railroad Company...
. In 1852, he was appointed again Division Engineer of the Middle Division of the State Canals by William J. McAlpine
William J. McAlpine
William Jarvis McAlpine was an American civil engineer and politician from New York.-Life:...
, was maintained in office by Whig State Engineer John T. Clark
John T. Clark
For other people with a similar name see John ClarkJohn T. Clark was an American civil engineer and politician from New York.-Life:He lived at Utica, Oneida County, New York....
, but was removed in 1856 by the American Party
Know Nothing
The Know Nothing was a movement by the nativist American political faction of the 1840s and 1850s. It was empowered by popular fears that the country was being overwhelmed by German and Irish Catholic immigrants, who were often regarded as hostile to Anglo-Saxon Protestant values and controlled by...
majority of the Canal Board.
He was New York State Engineer and Surveyor
New York State Engineer and Surveyor
The New York State Engineer and Surveyor was a state cabinet officer in the State of New York between 1848 and 1926. During the re-organization of the state government under Governor Al Smith, the office was abolished and its responsibilities transferred to the Department of Public Works which was...
from 1858 to 1861, and from 1868 to 1871, elected four times on the Democratic ticket.
He died from a "sudden stroke of apoplexy
Apoplexy
Apoplexy is a medical term, which can be used to describe 'bleeding' in a stroke . Without further specification, it is rather outdated in use. Today it is used only for specific conditions, such as pituitary apoplexy and ovarian apoplexy. In common speech, it is used non-medically to mean a state...
".
His son Dennison Richmond (ca. 1842-1888) was also Division Engineer of the Middle Division.
Sources
- http://books.google.com.br/books?id=eYkDAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA29 Biographical Sketches of the State Officers and Members of the Legislature in the State of New York in 1859 by Wm. D. Murphy (pages 29ff; C. Van Benthuysen, Albany NY, 1859)
- http://www.history.rochester.edu/canal/bib/whitford/old1906/vol2/chapter3.htm Engineers bios, at Rochester history (giving Oxford, NY, as birthplace)
- http://politicalgraveyard.com/bio/richmond.html Political Graveyard
- http://query.nytimes.com/mem/archive-free/pdf?res=9D02E0DD103BE033A25751C2A9679D94629FD7CF Obit in NYT on November 22, 1883
- http://query.nytimes.com/mem/archive-free/pdf?res=9C04E4D81F38E033A25756C0A9669D94699FD7CF His son's death notice, in NYT on October 5, 1888