Charles R. (Charles Russell) Richards

Born in Roxbury, Massachusetts, on June 30, 1865, Charles Russell Richards became a leading voice in technical and industrial education. He studied at MIT, then went on to teach and lead programs that connected science, craft, and design with everyday work and modern industry.

Over the course of his career, he served at Pratt Institute and Teachers College, Columbia University, and later became director of Cooper Union in New York. He was also active in the museum world, serving as director of the American Association of Museums and helping found the New York Museum of Science and Industry.

Richards wrote books including Manual Training in the Public Schools, The Industrial Museum, and Art in Industry. He was especially interested in making the processes behind modern production visible and understandable, and contemporaries also noted his strong interest in art, including Chinese art. He died in New York on February 21, 1936.