Rufus B. (Rufus Byam) Richardson

Born in Westford, Massachusetts, in 1845, Rufus Byam Richardson studied at Yale and later continued his education in Berlin. He taught Greek at Indiana University and then at Dartmouth College, where he served as professor of Greek before moving into a larger role in archaeology and academic leadership.

Richardson is best known for his work with the American School of Classical Studies at Athens. He served first as Annual Director in 1890–1891 and then as Director from 1893 to 1903, years when the school expanded its fieldwork and took on major responsibilities at ancient Corinth. Later accounts of the school remembered him as an important figure in its early development, and the Corinth excavation houses were named in part for him.

He also wrote for a wider audience. His books include Vacation Days in Greece, Greece through the stereoscope, and A History of Greek Sculpture (1911), reflecting his gift for explaining the ancient Greek world in a clear, approachable way. He was elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in 1900 and died in 1914.