Joseph Francis RICHARDS

Born

27 June 1910 , Winchendon, Massachusetts, USA

Died

19 November 1959 , Augusta, Maine, USA

Parents & Family of Joseph Francis RICHARDS

Parents

2 recorded View parent relationships

Grandparents

4 recorded View grandparents

Spouses, Marriages & Children

1 recorded relationshipView family relationships

Family Tree

Open family tree View pedigree chart

Born: 27 June 1910 in Winchendon, Massachusetts, USA

Parents of Joseph Francis RICHARDS

Father

Henry Adelbert RICHARDS

Mother

Alma Victoria DUVAL

Grandparents of Joseph Francis RICHARDS

Paternal grandparents

Henry Joseph RICHARDS Anna RICARD

Maternal grandparents

François DUVAL Hermine DESROSIERS dite DUTREMBLE

Joseph Francis was a soldier in World War II.
Tracing Ancestors Through Military Service Records: Unveiling Family Heroes

Spouse(s)/Partner(s) and Child(ren):

Joseph Francis married Bertha Helen LIBBY 6 February 1937 in Westbrook, Maine, USA . The couple had (at least) 4 children.
Bertha Helen LIBBY was born 14 May 1915 in South Portland, Maine, USA. Bertha Helen died 22 February 1985 in Freeport, Maine, USA. Bertha Helen was the child of William Martin LIBBY and Grace Edith LIBBY.

Joseph Francis RICHARDS died 19 November 1959 in Augusta, Maine, USA.
Details of the family tree of Joseph appear below.

FAMILY HERITAGE FINDS

Gifts & Books Connected to This Family

Explore a family-history gift or research resource related to this ancestor.

Operation Underworld: How the Mafia and U.S. Government Teamed Up to Win World War II

World War II: The Definitive Visual History from Blitzkrieg to the Atom Bomb

Honoring WWII Heroes Ceramic Coffee Mug – World War II Veteran Tribute Gift

Crafted from durable ceramic, this mug is perfect for morning coffee, evening tea, or thoughtful reflection. The dignified 'Honoring WWII Heroes' caption makes it an especially meaningful gift for Veterans Day, Memorial Day, Independence Day, or as a keepsake for those with a personal connection to World War II history.

Spouses, Marriages & Children of Joseph Francis RICHARDS

Joseph Francis RICHARDS married

Bertha Helen LIBBY
Marriage date: 6 February 1937
Marriage place: Westbrook, Maine, USA
Bertha Helen LIBBY was the child of William Martin LIBBY and Grace Edith LIBBY

Marriage notes:

"Joseph Francis Richards was born 27 Jun 1910 in Winchendon, Worcester, Massachusetts and married Bertha Helen Libby on 6 Feb 1937 in Westbrook, Cumberland, Maine. Joseph died on 19 Nov 1959 in Augusta, Kennebec, Maine."

Thanks to Erica Rielly

Children of Joseph Francis RICHARDS and Bertha Helen LIBBY

David Arthur RICHARDS

Born: 25 July 1938, Westbrook, Maine, USA
Died: 19 May 1948, Westbrook, Maine, USA

Alma Grace RICHARDS

Born: 11 January 1940, Westbrook, Maine, USA
Died: 16 March 1986, Portland, Maine, USA

Ronald Edward RICHARDS

Born: 4 April 1945, Westbrook, Maine, USA
Died: 19 December 1980, South Portland, Maine, USA

Albert Henry RICHARDS

Born: 5 September 1947, Westbrook, Maine, USA
Died: 28 February 1990, Portland, Maine, USA

Add Life Event

Have another record or photo?
Add a life event, census record, military record, obituary, achievement, or photograph for Joseph Francis RICHARDS.

Life & Records

Photos, life events, and historical records for Joseph Francis RICHARDS.

How to read this timeline
Records about Joseph Francis RICHARDS and family appear alongside historical events from the same years. Each item is labeled so you can quickly tell family records from historical context.

Show:

Use these buttons to focus on the ancestor's own records or the wider historical context.

1910 Birth

Massachusetts Births, 1841-1915
Name: Joseph Francis Richards
titles & terms:
event: Birth
Event Date: 27 Jun 1910
Event Place: Winchendon, Worcester, Massachusetts
Gender:
Race:
registration date:
registration Place:
christening date:
christening Place:
christening Age:
Death Date:
death Age:
father: Henry D. Richards
father's titles & terms:
father's birthPlace:
father's Age:
mother: Alma Duval
mother's titles & terms:
mother's birthPlace:
mother's Age:
paternal grandfather:
paternal grandmother:
maternal grandfather:
maternal grandmother:
additional relatives:
volume/ page/ certificate number: 472
Film Number: 2315296
Digital Folder Number: 4401713
Image Number: 465

Source / record details
familysearch.org (Mormon Genealogy Records)
Unofficial Guide to FamilySearch.org: How to Find Your Family History on the World's Largest Free Genealogy Website

1912 - April 15 - Titanic sinks in the North Atlantic

1913 - The assembly line is invented (Henry Ford, United States)

The bra is invented (Mary Phelps Jacob, United States)

1913 - Woodrow Wilson becomes President of the United States

1913 - October 31 – The Lincoln Highway, the first automobile road across the United States, is dedicated

1915 - January 25 - First United States coast-to-coast long-distance telephone call

1917 - March 2 – The enactment of the Jones Act grants Puerto Ricans United States citizenship.

1917 - April 6 – WWI: The United States declares war on Germany

1918 - March 19 – The United States Congress establishes time zones and approves daylight saving time

1919 - June 4 – Women's rights: The United States Congress approves the 19th Amendment to the United States Constitution, which would guarantee suffrage to women, and sends it to the U.S. states for ratification

1920 Winchendon, Worcester, Massachusetts

Name: Joseph F Richards
Residence: Winchendon Town, Worcester, Massachusetts
estimated Birth Year: 1910
Age: 10
birthPlace: Massachusetts
Relationship to Head of Household: Son
Gender: Male
Race: White
Marital Status: Single
father's birthPlace:
mother's birthPlace:
Film Number: 1820749
Digital Folder Number: 4311574
Image Number: 00534
sheet number: 15
Household Gender Age
parent Henry D Richards M 38y
parent Alma V Richards F 35y
Lucy A Richards F 16y
Betrice Richards F 15y
Edward H Richards M 13y
Josephine E Richards F 11y
Joseph F Richards M 10y
Adaline R Richards F 8y
Eugene A Richards M 5y
Fredia L Richards F 4y3m
Pauline R Richards F 9m

Source / record details
1920 Census Ancestry (U.S.)
Exploring the U.S. Census: Your Guide to America’s Data

1920 - January 17 - Prohibition goes into effect on January 17, 1920, under the provisions of the 18th Amendment to the United States Constitution

1921 - Warren G. Harding becomes President of the United States

1921 - Charles Strite of Minnesota patents the pop-up toaster.

1923 to 1927 - Television is invented (Vladimir Kosma Zworykin (Russia), Philo Taylor Farnsworth (United States))

1923 - Calvin Coolidge becomes President of the United States

1927 - The aerosol can is invented (Erik Rotheim, Norway)

1927 - April 7 – Bell Telephone Co. transmits an image of Herbert Hoover (then the Secretary of Commerce), which becomes the first successful long distance demonstration of television

1928 - Sliced bread (bread slicing machine) is invented by Otto Frederick Rohwedder (United States)

1929 - Herbert Hoover becomes President of the United States

1929 - October 29 - Black Tuesday - Stock market crash - The Great Depression Begins - It lasted until 1941 (WW2)

1930 Cape Elizabeth, Cumberland, Maine

Is this him?

Name: Joseph F Richards
event: Census
Event Date: 1930
Event Place: Cape Elizabeth, Cumberland, Maine
Gender: Male
Age: 20
Marital Status: Single
Race: White
birthPlace: Massachusetts
estimated Birth Year: 1910
Immigration Year:
Relationship to Head of Household:
father's birthPlace: Massachusetts
mother's birthPlace: Canada
enumeration district number: 9
family number:
Sheet Number and Letter: 7A
Line Number: 31
nara publication: T626, roll 830
Film Number: 2340565
Digital Folder Number: 4584730
Image Number: 00298

Source / record details
1930 Census Ancestry (U.S.)
Exploring the U.S. Census: Your Guide to America’s Data

1930 - Scotch tape is invented (Richard Drew (3M), United States)

In 1930, on February 18, Pluto was discovered by astronomer Clyde Tombaugh at the Lowell Observatory in Flagstaff, Arizona, marking a significant milestone in the study of our solar system.

1931 - The paper towel is invented (Arthur Scott, United States)

1931 - March 3 – The Star-Spangled Banner is adopted as the United States National anthem.

1933 - Franklin D. Roosevelt becomes President of the United States

1933 - December 5 – The 21st Amendment to the United States Constitution is passed, repealing Prohibition

1934 - The metal beverage can is invented (American Can Co., United States)

1935 - The snowmobile was invented by Joseph Bombardier (Quebec, Canada)

1935 - August 14 – United States President Franklin Roosevelt signs the Social Security Act into law

1937 Marriage / Partner
Joseph Francis RICHARDS and Bertha Helen LIBBY 6 February 1937, Westbrook, Maine, USA (Saccarappa) (Cumberland Mills)

He was 26 years old.

1938 - The ballpoint pen is invented (Lazlo Biro, Hungary)

1938-1944 - Sunscreen is invented (Franz Greiter, Switzerland and Benjamin Green, United States)

1938 Birth of Child
David Arthur RICHARDS was born 25 July 1938, Westbrook, Maine, USA (Saccarappa) (Cumberland Mills)

Joseph Francis was 28 years old.

1938 - October 27 - Du Pont announces a name for its new synthetic yarn: nylon.

1940 Birth of Child
Alma Grace RICHARDS was born 11 January 1940, Westbrook, Maine, USA (Saccarappa) (Cumberland Mills)

Joseph Francis was 29 years old.

1940 - April - 1st electron microscope demonstrated (RCA), Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA

1941 - December 8 - (the day after the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor) United States declares war on Japan (WW2)

1944 - D-Day, which occurred on June 6, 1944, was a pivotal World War II operation where Allied forces launched a massive invasion on the beaches of Normandy, France. Known as Operation Overlord, it involved over 156,000 troops from the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, and other Allied nations. The operation aimed to liberate Western Europe from Nazi German control. The landings marked the beginning of the end for Nazi Germany, leading to the eventual Allied victory in Europe.

1945 - The atomic bomb is invented (J. Robert Oppenheimer, et al., United States)

The microwave oven was invented accidentally in 1945 by Percy Spencer, a Raytheon engineer. While testing a magnetron, he noticed microwaves melted a candy bar in his pocket. Experimenting further, he discovered microwaves could cook food quickly. Raytheon patented the process, and by 1947, they built the first commercial microwave oven, called the 'Radarange.' Initially used in commercial settings, microwaves becomes affordable for home use by the 1960s and 1970s, revolutionizing cooking.

1945 Birth of Child
Ronald Edward RICHARDS was born 4 April 1945, Westbrook, Maine, USA (Saccarappa) (Cumberland Mills)

Joseph Francis was 34 years old.

1945 - Harry S. Truman becomes President of the United States

1945 - On September 2, 1945, World War II officially ended with the formal surrender of Japan. The surrender ceremony took place aboard the USS Missouri in Tokyo Bay, where Japanese officials signed the Instrument of Surrender in the presence of Allied representatives, including General Douglas MacArthur and Admiral Chester Nimitz.

1947 Birth of Child
Albert Henry RICHARDS was born 5 September 1947, Westbrook, Maine, USA (Saccarappa) (Cumberland Mills)

Joseph Francis was 37 years old.

1948 - Velcro is invented (George de Mestral, Switzerland)

1948 Death of Child
David Arthur RICHARDS died 19 May 1948, Westbrook, Maine, USA (Saccarappa) (Cumberland Mills)

Joseph Francis was 37 years old.

1950 - June 25 - Korean War begins when North Korean forces invade South Korea.

1953 - Dwight D. Eisenhower becomes President of the United States

1953 - On July 27, 1953, the Korean War ended with the signing of an armistice agreement at Panmunjom. This ceasefire halted the conflict between North Korea, supported by China and the Soviet Union, and South Korea, backed by United Nations forces primarily from the United States. The agreement established the Korean Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) near the 38th parallel, effectively maintaining the pre-war boundary and creating a buffer zone between the two Koreas.

Death — 1959
19 November 1959
Augusta, Maine, USA
He died at the age of 49.