Scope and Content Note
The papers of William Henry Richards (1856-1941) span the years 1856-1946 with the bulk of material dating from 1895 to 1930. William Henry Richards, born to emancipated parents in 1856, was a lawyer and, for thirty-eight years, a professor of law at Howard University. Richards was one of only a handful of African American lawyers practicing in Washington, D.C., at the turn of the twentieth century. His papers document his career as a lawyer and professor and his work with the Bethel Literary and Historical Association of Washington, D.C. and the Niagara Movement (precursor to the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People). The collection includes correspondence, legal and financial papers, biographical materials, pamphlets, and magazines.
The wills, deeds, and affidavits generated through his law practice provide a glimpse into the relationships, finances, and holdings of African Americans in Washington, D.C., from the late 1890s through the 1930s. The account ledgers and receipts include entries for clients such as William Henry Harrison Hart, Kelly Miller, John C. Norwood, and Holland Powell. In addition, stock, share, and insurance certificates and rare printed matter provide a record of African American financial, fraternal, and literary organizations.
The collection also contains records of Richards's real estate holdings in Tennessee, Minnesota, and Washington, D.C. Richards inherited property from Jaretta White and most notably, Julia B. Nelson, a suffragist and schoolteacher from Minnesota. Richards worked with Nelson in a Quaker school in Tennessee circa 1875. She loaned him money to finance his college education and bequeathed him the bulk of her estate when she died in 1914. Account ledgers, correspondence, and writings detail their friendship and shared interest in women's suffrage and the temperance movement.
Richards's professional career at Howard University is documented through printed matter including Howard University Department of Law prospectus brochures, a copy of the Howard University General Alumni Association constitution, and issues of The Blue Ribbon Magazine. Writings, books, and law course materials document Richards's intellectual pursuits.
Correspondents include family members, Howard University faculty and students, and clients. Although the correspondence is primarily incoming, some of the correspondence includes outgoing drafts.