Born near Lexington, Kentucky, Richardson came a distinguished family. His maternal great-granfather was a veteran of the American Revolutionary War participating in the Battle of Kings Mountain. His maternal grandfather fought in the War of 1812 and was killed in the Battle of Frenchtown.^[1] Richardson attended Transylvania University, and then proceeded to teach school and study law. He passed the bar exam in 1831 and started his practice in Shelbyville, Illinois. He served as an officer during the Black Hawk War whose soldiers remembered the "stern coarseness" of his leadership.^[2] He was an attorney for the state from 1834 to 1835, and was elected representative to the state house, serving from 1836 to 1838. Duirng this term Richardson served alongside Stephen Douglas and Abraham Lincoln.^[3]

In 1837 he supportted Lincoln in making Springfield the captial for Illinois, after the charter for Vandalia expired.^[4] Richardson was a supporter of President Andrew Jackson against the Second Bank of the United States. At the state level he supported a bill that would make bank directors and stockholders responsible for redemptions notes that citizens had with the state.^[5] When Governor Joseph Duncan defended the Bank, Richardson and other Democrats introduced a resolution calling such claims "contrary to the assertions of the patriot and statesmen, General Jackson.^[6]

He was narrowly elected to the state senate in 1838 by only seven votes which almost led to a duel between Richardson and his opponent's campaign managers.^[7] He served to 1842 deciding against reelection. Richardson returned to the house again from 1844 to 1846, briefly serving as speaker of the lower house during his last term. He was a presidential elector in 1844 for successful Democratic nominee James K. Polk.

When the Mexican-American War broke out, Richardson raised a company of volunteers who then chose him as their captain in the U.S. Army. Initially under John J. Hardin's command, Richardson's regiment was later placed under General Zachery Taylor and by the end of the war Richardson was promoted to Lieutenant-colonel.^[8] A strong defender of the war one of his first actions in congress was introducing an unsuccessful resolution calling the conflict "just and necessary".^[9] When his term of service expired in July 1847, he moved to Quincy, Illinois, and then was elected a U.S. congressman to the 30th Congress to fill Stephen A. Douglas's seat. He was then reelected to the 31st, 32nd, 33rd, and 34th Congresses for the same seat (1847 to 1856).

Congressional Career edit

During his time in the House of Representatives, he was the Chairman of the Committee on Territories (32nd–33rd Congresses). He resigned in August 1856 to run for Governor of Illinois, narrowly losing to fellow representative, and first nominee of the newly established Republican Party, William H. Bissell. Richardson carried most of south Illinois while Bissell won most of north Illinois. Bissell won by 4,697 votes, a margin of just under 2%.^[10]

After being defeated, Richardson was appointed by President James Buchanan as the Governor of the Nebraska Territory for most of 1858. Richardson resigned near the end of the year, remaining loyal to his political mentor, Stephen A. Douglas.

He was a delegate to 1860 Democratic National Convention from Illinois. He then came back to Washington D.C. as a member of the 37th Congress in 1861. In 1863, he was elected to fill Stephen Douglas's old seat in the United States Senate, defeating incumbent Republican Orville Browning. He was not renominated in 1865 and spent the rest of his life engaged in newspaper work.

He died on December 27, 1875, in Quincy, Illinois, where he is buried.

Richardson County, Nebraska, is named after him.

1. "Richardson, William Alexander". The Political Graveyard. Retrieved January 10, 2006.
2. "Richardson, William Alexander". Biographical Directory of the United States Congress. Retrieved January 10, 2006.

• This article incorporates facts obtained from: Lawrence Kestenbaum, The Political Graveyard
•   This article incorporates public domain material from the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress

• Holt, Robert D. “The Political Career of William A. Richardson.” Journal of the Illinois State Historical Society (1908-1984) 26, no. 3 (1933): 222–69. online.
• Shawn Hale. “A Copperhead in Quincy Goes to Washington: Senator William A. Richardson.” Journal of the Illinois State Historical Society (1998-) 109, no. 2 (2016): 180–205. online.