Richard Williams | |
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| Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromOregon'sAt-large district | |
| In office March 4, 1877 – March 3, 1879 | |
| Preceded by | Lafayette Lane |
| Succeeded by | John Whiteaker |
| Personal details | |
| Born | November 15, 1836 |
| Died | June 19, 1914 (aged 77) |
| Political party | Republican |
Richard Williams (November 15, 1836 – June 19, 1914) was an American lawyer and politician in the state ofOregon. A native of Ohio, he moved to Oregon in 1851 where he became an attorney. A Republican, he was theUnited States Congressman representingOregon's at large congressional district for one term from 1877 to 1879.
Williams was born inFindlay, Ohio to Elijah Williams.[1] In Ohio he attended the public schools before the family moved to Oregon in 1851 over theOregon Trail.[1] The family first settled inMilwaukie, Oregon, and thenSalem where he was educated in the local schools.[1] He also attendedWillamette University in Salem, and was admitted to thebar in 1857.[2]
Richard Williams then moved toSan Francisco, California in 1857 and began practicing law.[1] The following year he returned to Oregon and practiced law inKerbyville inJosephine County, followed byCorvallis in 1860, and Salem in 1862.[1] In 1862 he married Clara J. Congle, and they had one daughter.[1] He partnered withRufus Mallory andParish L. Willis while practicing law in Salem.[2] The family moved toPortland in 1872.[1] There he partnered withLair Hill and later governorWilliam Wallace Thayer.[2]
Williams ran as aRepublican for Congress in 1874. He facedDemocratGeorge A. La Dow and, due to a split in the Republican party, also faced Timothy W. Davenport, who ran as an Independent. Davenport, one of the founders of the Oregon Republican party, and father of political cartoonistHomer Davenport, debated Williams throughout the state, with the result that the Republican vote was split and La Dow won the election by a narrow plurality.[3] He ran again in 1876, and was elected, defeating incumbentLafayette Lane,[4] though the election was contested by Samuel McDowell.[5] Williams prevailed and served one term from 1877 to 1879.
After his one term in Congress, Williams resumed his law practice in Portland and served on thePortland School Board for 20 years beginning in 1890. Williams partnered with Willis a second time for one year in 1885 before practicing law with his brother E. B. Williams.[2] He died in Portland in 1914 and was buried atRiver View Cemetery in Portland.[6]
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| Preceded by | Member of the U.S. House of Representatives fromOregon's at-large congressional district 1877–1879 | Succeeded by |
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