# William B. Richardson *Minnesota politician and Mayor of Rochester (1874–1945)* William Burdette Richardson (November 10, 1874 – September 19, 1945) was a [[Republican Party (United States)|Republican]] politician in [[Minnesota]]. He was mayor of Rochester from 1911 to 1917. He then sat in the [[Minnesota Senate]] from his election in 1926 until his death in office in 1945.[^1] As president pro tempore of the Senate, Richardson stood next in the line of succession after the [[governor]], [[Floyd B. Olson]], died. Lieutenant Governor [[Hjalmar Petersen]] then moved into the governorship. Richardson acted as lieutenant governor from August 24, 1936, to January 1, 1937, without ever taking the oath of that office. In 1937 he presided over the Senate in an acting capacity because illness kept Lieutenant Governor-elect [[Gottfrid Lindsten]] from his duties.[^1] ## Life and career Richardson was a native of Rochester, where he was born in 1874. His father, Henry M. Richardson, was among the early settlers of [[Olmsted County, Minnesota|Olmsted County]] and was active in Republican politics at the local and state levels. His mother, Sarah McCrillis, came from Massachusetts.[^1] After Rochester High School, he studied at the [[University of Minnesota Law School]] and finished in 1900. He returned to Rochester to practice law alongside his brother, Harold James Richardson, who was also an attorney.[^1] Richardson held the Rochester mayoralty for six years, from 1911 to 1917. Voters sent him to the Minnesota Senate in 1926. He won five further elections to the seat, the last in 1942.[^1] Olson's death and Petersen's elevation to governor left Richardson, as the Senate's president pro tempore, first in the line of succession. He was styled Acting Lieutenant Governor from August 24, 1936, until January 1, 1937, but was never formally sworn in.[^1] During 1937 he also acted as president of the Senate, filling in for Lieutenant Governor-elect Lindsten, who was too ill to serve.[^1] Richardson was still a senator when he died on September 19, 1945. His grave is in Rochester's Oakwood Cemetery.[^1] ## In the Minnesota record ### Who - William Burdette Richardson, Republican; mayor of Rochester and state senator.[^1] ### What - Mayor of Rochester, Minnesota.[^1] - Member of the Minnesota Senate: elected 1926, re-elected five times through 1942.[^1] - Acting Lieutenant Governor (never formally sworn in), August 24, 1936 – January 1, 1937.[^1] - Acting president of the Minnesota Senate, 1937.[^1] ### When - Born November 10, 1874; died in office September 19, 1945.[^1] - Mayor of Rochester, 1911–1917.[^1] - Acting Lieutenant Governor, August 24, 1936 – January 1, 1937.[^1] ### Where - Rochester, Minnesota: birthplace, law practice, mayoralty and burial (Oakwood Cemetery).[^1] ### How - He succeeded to the acting lieutenant governorship as president pro tempore of the Senate, the next office in the line of succession, after the lieutenant governor became governor on Olson's death.[^1] ## Notes [^1]: Wikipedia contributors, *William B. Richardson* (revision 1365800280, retrieved 2026-10-25) — birth, parentage, education, law practice, mayoralty, Senate elections, acting lieutenant governorship, acting Senate presidency, death and burial. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_B._Richardson