Stephen D. Richards

In the mid-19th century, Nebraska experienced a period of territorial expansion in the wake of the Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854, which saw the creation of Nebraska and Kansas territories to facilitate the construction of the Transcontinental railroad.{{sfn|Holt|1978|pp=53-54, 72-73}} In 1867, Nebraska was admitted into the Union as the 37th state, two years after the conclusion of the American Civil War.{{cite web|title=Nebraska|url=https://www.history.com/topics/us-states/nebraska|website=History|publisher=A&E Television Networks|access-date=May 18, 2023|date=November 9, 2009|archive-date=May 18, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230518021327/https://www.history.com/topics/us-states/nebraska|url-status=live}}{{cite web |title=Nebraska Statehood Launched in Troubled Times |website=History Nebraska |date=March 2023 |url=https://history.nebraska.gov/nebraska-statehood-launched-in-troubled-times/ |access-date=May 18, 2023 |archive-date=May 18, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230518212328/https://history.nebraska.gov/nebraska-statehood-launched-in-troubled-times/ |url-status=live }} Nebraska's newfound statehood led to an influx of settlers; among the growing population and political controversies incited by the state's first governor David Butler, renewed calls for a state constitution were made in 1871.{{sfn|Gless|2008|pp=21-25}} At the time of Richards' crime spree and trial, Nebraska's law and justice system had only recently been developed, with the state's criminal code written into state law in 1871.{{sfn|Gless|2008|p=30}} Before his execution, the state had only one recorded execution, in 1863, four years before its inclusion into the United States.{{cite web|date=June 13, 2015|title=Nebraska's first legal executions|url=https://journalstar.com/nebraska-s-first-legal-executions/article_962c7ab2-7aa5-5e97-a635-129c58b58ba8.html|work=Lincoln Journal Star|access-date=October 7, 2019|archive-date=July 11, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190711173522/https://journalstar.com/nebraska-s-first-legal-executions/article_962c7ab2-7aa5-5e97-a635-129c58b58ba8.html|url-status=live}}

Stephen Decatur Richards was born in Wheeling, Virginia, on March 18, 1856.{{sfn|Wheeling Daily Intelligencer|1878|p=2}}{{sfn|Johnson|2000|p=142}} He was said to have had five sisters and a brother.{{sfn|Nebraska State Journal|1879b|p=46}}{{sfn|Sedalia Weekly Bazoo|1879|p=3}}{{sfn|Johnson|2000|p=140}} When Richards was six, his family relocated to Ohio; first to Monroe County, and then to Noble County.{{sfn|Nebraska State Journal|1879b|p=1}}{{sfn|Wheeling Daily Intelligencer|1878|p=2}}{{sfn|Johnson|2000|p=142}} The family later settled in the Quaker village of Mount Pleasant in Ohio when he was eleven. Richards later described his mother as a devout Methodist, and his father, a farmer,{{sfn|Atchison Daily Champion|1878|p=2}}{{sfn|Belmont Chronicle|1879|p=2}}{{sfn|Johnson|2000|p=142}} as having "made no profession of religion".{{sfn|Nebraska State Journal|1879b|p=1}} Richards attended school in Mount Pleasant; he claimed that the teachers considered him well behaved. At his mother's insistence, he also attended Sunday school and church regularly.{{sfn|Nebraska State Journal|1879b|p=1}}{{sfn|Johnson|2000|p=142}}

Up until the age of twenty, Richards lived with his parents, working for farmers and other locals in the area. On September 16, 1871, Richards' mother died of an unknown cause.{{sfn|Wheeling Daily Intelligencer|1878|p=2}}{{sfn|Johnson|2000|p=142}}{{sfn|Nebraska State Journal|1879b|p=11}} At the age of 20, Richards met and became engaged to a young woman named Anna Millhorne, with whom he regularly corresponded during his later travels, up until his final arrest. Richards also met men whom he described as being of "questionable occupation"; he began passing counterfeit bills he obtained from a man in New York City. In February 1876, he left Mount Pleasant, heading west for better career opportunities.{{sfn|Johnson|2000|p=142}}{{sfn|Nebraska State Journal|1879b|p=12}}

For a short time, Richards lived in Iowa, working as a farmhand in Burlington and Morning Sun. He was later hired as an attendant at the Iowa Lunatic Asylum in Mount Pleasant, Iowa; tasked with burying deceased patients.{{sfn|Nebraska State Journal|1879b|p=12}}{{sfn|New York Times|1879a|p=2}}{{sfn|Wheeling Daily Intelligencer|1878|p=1}}{{sfn|Johnson|2000|p=143}} The New York Times wrote that Richards' time working at the asylum was a significant event in his life that shaped his own humanity and view of the human race.{{sfn|New York Times|1879a|p=2}} While he denied witnessing any abuse of the asylum's patients, he later reflected that during his tenure of handling and disposing of deceased patients, he became accustomed to viewing people as 'nothing more than meat'.{{sfn|Sedalia Weekly Bazoo|1879|p=2}}{{sfn|Wheeling Daily Intelligencer|1878|p=1}}{{sfn|Omaha Herald|1878|p=2}}

Richards left the asylum in October of 1876, and began drifting around the Midwestern United States,{{sfn|Nebraska State Journal|1879b|p=12}}{{sfn|New York Times|1879a|p=2}}{{sfn|Wheeling Daily Intelligencer|1878|p=1}} finding intermittent work and occasionally consorting with train robbers. He stayed in Kansas City briefly before moving on to Nebraska, where he passed through Hastings before arriving in Kearney,{{sfn|Nebraska State Journal|1879b|p=15}} residing there for two to three weeks before leaving for Cheyenne County.{{sfn|Nebraska State Journal|1879b|p=14}} According to Richards, he became involved in several gunfights during his stay, resulting in him shooting each individual, although he stated he was unaware of their condition after each confrontation.{{sfn|Wheeling Daily Intelligencer|1878|p=1}} During this period, Richards went under the name William Hudson, later discarding this once he reached Kansas City.{{sfn|Johnson|2000|p=144}}

In a confession written after his final arrest, Richards admitted to having killed four men during his travels around Nebraska and Iowa between 1876 and 1877.{{sfn|Nebraska State Journal|1879b|pp=10–11}} He described committing his first murder sometime in late 1876, two weeks after arriving in Kearney.

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| alt1 = A photograph of a historical marker for Dobytown, Nebraska

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| footer = Contemporary newspaper reports of the site of Richards' first murder varied, some saying it was near Dobytown (above), and others giving it as near Sand Hills (below).

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According to Richards, he met a man while traveling on horseback through the Nebraska countryside, and the pair decided to camp for the night near Dobytown.{{sfn|Nebraska State Journal|1879b|p=13}} (Several newspapers reported that the two men's campsite was instead near Sand Hills.){{efn-lr|Attributed to multiple references:{{sfn|Atchison Daily Champion|1878|p=2}}{{sfn|The Workingman's Friend|1879|p=1}}{{sfn|New York Daily Herald|1878b|p=5}}{{sfn|Nebraska State Journal|1878|p=2}}}} Settling down for the night, the two began gambling in a game of cards, with Richards winning most of the stranger's money. As the two set off for Kearney the following morning, the other man turned on Richards and demanded his money back. Richards refused, whereupon, he claimed, the other man became belligerent. Richards then shot him above the left eye, killing him instantly. After confirming the man was dead, he disposed of the body in the Platte River.{{sfn|Nebraska State Journal|1879b|p=13}}

Several days later, as he continued his trek to Kearney, Richards encountered another man fifteen miles from an area called Walker's Ranch.{{sfn|Johnson|2000|p=144}}{{sfn|Nebraska State Journal|1879b|p=13}} The man had seen Richards and the previous traveler together, and the stranger asked what had become of that man. While talking to him, Richards realized that this man and the deceased were friends and business partners.{{sfn|Nebraska State Journal|1879b|p=13}}{{efn|In his confession, Richards said the man had identified the murder victim as John, but Richards was unable to find out the dead man's surname;{{sfn|Nebraska State Journal|1879b|p=14}}{{sfn|Johnson|2000|p=144}} however, it was given as Crawford in an article published ten days after Richards' execution.{{sfn|St. Louis Globe-Democrat|1879|p=4}}}} Richards denied any knowledge of the dead man, but his friend continued to hound Richards with questions,{{sfn|Nebraska State Journal|1879b|p=14}} which caused Richards to become increasingly anxious. Believing the man knew too much, Richards decided to kill the stranger to prevent any discovery of the murder. When the stranger turned his back to Richards, he was shot in the back of the head. He disposed of the corpse and sold the man's horse in a nearby town. Before reaching Kearney, Richards stopped at the home of Jasper Harlson,{{efn|The surname is spelled Harlson in the transcript of Richards' confession.{{sfn|Nebraska State Journal|1879b|p=19}} Other sources give different spellings, including Harrison,{{sfn|The Workingman's Friend|1879|p=1}} Harleson,{{sfn|Quad-City Times|1878|p=1}} Haralson{{sfn|Johnson|2000|p=144}}{{sfn|Nebraska State Journal|1878|p=2}} and Harrelson.{{sfn|Atchison Daily Champion|1878|p=2}}{{sfn|Belmont Chronicle|1879|p=2}}{{sfn|New York Daily Herald|1878b|p=5}}}} who, according to Richards, was a train robber.{{sfn|Nebraska State Journal|1879b|p=14}} Mary, Jasper's wife,{{sfn|Atchison Daily Champion|1878|p=2}}{{sfn|The Workingman's Friend|1879|p=1}}{{sfn|Wilson|2014|p=12}} noticed upon his arrival that Richards' shirt was stained with blood, and commented on it. Richards had not noticed blood on his clothes, and claimed to have replied, as if in jest, that it must have come from the men he had murdered. That ended the conversation.{{sfn|Nebraska State Journal|1879b|p=14}}{{sfn|Johnson|2000|p=144}}

After his stay, Richards traveled to Cedar Rapids, Iowa, where he used counterfeit money to purchase a horse and buggy from an unidentified man. After he left, the seller discovered the bills were not genuine. Tracking Richards down, the seller demanded that Richards give him real money or return his horse and buggy.{{sfn|Nebraska State Journal|1879b|p=15}} With Richards refusing both demands, the man threatened to have him arrested, and Richards responded by shooting him. He then buried the body and left the area.{{sfn|Nebraska State Journal|1879b|p=16}}

In March 1877, Richards and a young man with the surname Gemge left Grand Island, Nebraska, on horseback and headed towards Kearney. As they neared their destination, they stopped and camped for the night between Lowell and Kearney, along the Platte River. Richards woke up at about 3:00{{nbs}}a.m. and roused his partner, telling him it was nearly morning and they should get back on the road. Gemge, infuriated at being awakened so early, began arguing with Richards.{{sfn|Johnson|2000|p=146}}{{sfn|Nebraska State Journal|1879b|p=17}} The argument continued, as Richards later recounted:

{{Quote|text="It's a good thing you don't mean all you say," I said. "But I do mean it," he said. "You don't want to mean it," I said; and he picked up his revolver and said, "Here is something that backs all that I say," cocked it. I looked at him, and thought, "The fool acts as if he means to shoot," and skipping out my little 33 I plugged him one in the head. That was the first trouble we had ever had.{{sfn|Sedalia Weekly Bazoo|1879|p=2}}{{sfn|Omaha Herald|1878|p=2}}{{sfn|Johnson|2000|p=144}}}}

After leaving the area, Richards arrived at Kearney, registering under the name F.A. Hoge at the local hotel. During his stay, Richards reunited with several old acquaintances George "Dutch Henry" Johnson, and his companion Hurst, as well as a man who went by the name Mr. Burns. On March 21, Richards was arrested along with Burns, whom he had been spending most of his time with. At the time, both men were not told as to the reason for their arrest, although Richards came to suspect that it was for the murder of Gemge. It was only later that they were notified by the authorities that they were under suspicion for murder of a man named Peter Geteway, whom Richards claimed his innocence over. Although Richards was soon acquitted, Burns was held in custody because of a testimony of a "sporting lady" whom he had previously been acquainted with. Burns would also be acquitted sometime later after no evidence was found linking him to the crime.{{sfn|Johnson|2000|p=147}}{{sfn|Nebraska State Journal|1879b|p=18}}

File:Harlson Family Murders, Nebraska State Journal, December 1878.jpg reporting the Harlson family and Anderson's murders|Newspaper coverage of the Harlson family (spelled as 'Harolson' in this account) and Anderson murders]]

In June 1878, while in Kearney, Richards was arrested and jailed for larceny. He later claimed that this charge was unfounded.{{sfn|Nebraska State Journal|1879b|p=19}}{{sfn|Johnson|2000|p=147}} During his time in jail, he reunited with Mary L. Harlson. Shortly before Richards' arrival, she had been arrested under suspicion of having aided the escape of her husband and another prisoner, named Underwood or Nixon, from the Kearney jail.{{sfn|Wilson|2014|p=11}}{{sfn|New York Daily Herald|1878b|p=5}}{{sfn|Nebraska State Journal|1878|p=16}} Richards and Mary Harlson agreed that she would sell him the deed to her property six months later, for $600{{sfn|Nebraska State Journal|1879b|p=19}}{{sfn|Johnson|2000|p=147}}{{sfn|New York Daily Herald|1879|p=7}} (${{formatprice|{{inflation|US-GDP|600|1878|r=-3}}}} in {{inflation-year|US-GDP}}{{inflation-fn|US}}).

After Richards was released from jail, he traveled around Nebraska for several months. He did business in Hastings, Bloomington, and Grand Island before arriving at the Harlsons' Kearney County homestead on October 18, 1878. Mary Harlson transferred the property to Richards upon his arrival, and he stayed there for several weeks.{{sfn|Nebraska State Journal|1879b|p=20}} The New York Daily Herald later reported that Richards had married Harlson on November 2, in what the newspaper alleged was a scam to acquire ownership of Harlson's land.{{sfn|New York Daily Herald|1878a|p=7}}{{sfn|New York Daily Herald|1878b|p=5}} A month later, Richards decided to kill Harlson and her three children—ten-year-old Daisy, four-year-old Mabel, and two-year-old Jasper, nicknamed "Jesse".{{sfn|Sedalia Weekly Bazoo|1879|p=2}}{{sfn|Omaha Herald|1878|p=2}}{{sfn|New York Daily Herald|1878b|p=5}} In his confession, Richards claimed that Harlson had discovered that he was guilty of murder, and he feared that she might betray his presence to the authorities. To silence Harlson, and ensure that his previous crimes remained hidden, Richards resolved to murder the entire family.{{sfn|Nebraska State Journal|1879b|p=20}}

On November 3, 1878, Richards got up early in the morning, along with another man named Brown, who had been staying at the house.{{sfn|Nebraska State Journal|1879b|p=20}} Brown left to feed the horses and complete other chores around the farm. Richards found a spade and dug a hole, then sneaked back into the house and murdered Mary, Daisy, Mabel, and Jesse with an ax. According to one report, Mary and one of the children were murdered with a smoothing iron, while the other two were physically assaulted.{{sfn|New York Daily Herald|1878a|p=7}}{{sfn|New York Daily Herald|1878b|p=5}} This claim was also reported by some modern-day sources, who graphically described Richards killing Jasper by bashing his head against the wall.{{sfn|Bang|1952|p=104}}{{sfn|Boyle|1999|p=210}} However, these alternate details of the murders were refuted by Richards himself, saying he had killed the family while they were asleep.{{sfn|Sedalia Weekly Bazoo|1879|p=2}}{{sfn|Omaha Herald|1878|p=2}}{{sfn|Johnson|2000|p=149}} He said most of them had died after the first several blows, with the exception of Daisy, who had "writhed in pain for some time" by Richards' own account.{{sfn|Johnson|2000|p=149}}{{sfn|Nebraska State Journal|1879b|pp=21–22}} Richards was said to have scrubbed the blood off of the floor and himself after the murders, before calmly sitting down to breakfast.{{sfn|New York Daily Herald|1879|p=7}} After he had eaten, he carried the bodies out of the house and buried them in the hole he had dug nearby. When later questioned about the Harlsons' disappearance, Richards told several people the family had left with Brown, and he did not know when they would return.{{sfn|Nebraska State Journal|1879b|p=23}}{{sfn|Johnson|2000|p=150}} A 21st-century account stated Richards had made claims of Harlson transferring the deed of the farm to him, and subsequently left with her children, to reunite with her husband.{{sfn|Wilson|2014|p=11}} The bodies of Harlson and her children were discovered on December 11. Some reports said they had been concealed underneath a haystack,{{sfn|New York Daily Herald|1878a|p=7}} rather than buried, as Richards had later claimed.{{sfn|Nebraska State Journal|1879b|p=23}}

On December 9, 1878,{{cite web |last=Setlik|first=Michelle|title=Monday Mystery series: Nebraska's First Serial Killer had Nine Victims |url=https://theindependent.com/news/local/monday-mysteries-series-nebraskas-first-serial-killer-had-nine-victims/article_b80878b0-119f-11eb-8c5d-673beeed3900.html |website=The Independent {{subscription required}} |access-date=March 26, 2022|date=November 4, 2020 |url-status=live|archive-date=2020-11-13|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201113193533/https://theindependent.com/news/local/monday-mysteries-series-nebraskas-first-serial-killer-had-nine-victims/article_b80878b0-119f-11eb-8c5d-673beeed3900.html}}{{sfn|Johnson|2000|p=150}} Richards agreed to help his neighbor, a 26-year-old{{sfn|Johnson|2000|p=108}} immigrant from Sweden named Peter Anderson, with some work on Anderson's property.{{sfn|Nebraska State Journal|1879b|p=23}}{{sfn|Johnson|2000|p=150}} The Columbus Journal reported that Richards had used the alias "Dick Richardson" when working for Anderson.{{sfn|Columbus Journal|1878|p=2}} On December 9,{{sfn|Wilson|2014|p=11}}{{sfn|Sioux City Journal|1879|p=2}} Anderson became ill after eating a meal Richards had prepared, causing him to suspect Richards had poisoned him. Anderson informed a neighbor of his suspicions. The next day, he confronted Richards; the two fought, and Richards either beat Anderson to death with a hammer or hatchet,{{efn-lr|Attributed to multiple references:{{sfn|New York Times|1879a|p=2}}{{sfn|Omaha Herald|1878|p=2}}{{sfn|Johnson|2000|p=150}}{{sfn|Nebraska State Journal|1879b|p=24}}}} or shot him{{sfn|Atchison Daily Champion|1878|p=2}}{{sfn|The Workingman's Friend|1879|p=1}}{{sfn|Quad-City Times|1878|p=1}} (contemporary newspaper accounts vary). Anderson's body was later discovered in the cellar of his house, buried underneath a pile of coal.{{sfn|New York Daily Herald|1878a|p=7}}{{sfn|Johnson|2000|p=151}} Richards strongly denied poisoning Anderson, saying that was not his style. He claimed Anderson had attacked him with a knife and that he killed Anderson in self-defense.{{sfn|Nebraska Advertiser|1879|p=2}}{{sfn|Sedalia Weekly Bazoo|1879|p=3}} Anderson was later buried at the Bethany Cemetery in Axtell, Nebraska.{{sfn|Johnson|2000|p=108}}

Richards fled Kearney shortly after Anderson's murder, expecting that the bodies would soon be discovered. In the evening, as he was hitching up Anderson's horses and preparing to leave, some of Anderson's neighbors arrived. They had noticed Anderson's absence and questioned Richards about it. He reportedly told them Anderson was inside the house. As Anderson's neighbors entered the dwelling, Richards fled on horseback, riding to Bloomington{{efn-lr|Attributed to multiple references:{{sfn|Sedalia Weekly Bazoo|1879|p=2}}{{sfn|Johnson|2000|p=151}}{{sfn|Nebraska State Journal|1879b|p=32}}}} He traveled east, by horse and train and on foot, passing through Omaha and Chicago.{{efn|An article in the Lincoln Journal Star claimed that he fled instead to Red Cloud, and traveled to Chicago by way of Hastings. The article also stated that he used the alias "Samuel Richards" during his flight.}} While on the run, he met up with Jasper Harlson and Harlson's fellow escaped prisoner. The three traveled through Wheeling, West Virginia, and into Ohio, passing through Bridgeport, before arriving in Richards' hometown of Mount Pleasant.{{sfn|Sedalia Weekly Bazoo|1879|p=2}}{{sfn|New York Times|1879a|p=2}} Nebraska Governor Silas Garber issued an arrest warrant for Richards on December 16, 1878, and promised a reward of $200 (${{formatprice|{{inflation|US-GDP|200|1878|r=-3}}}} in {{inflation-year|US-GDP}}{{inflation-fn|US}}) for his arrest and conviction.{{sfn|Nebraska State Historical Society|1942|p=501}}

Most accounts state that on December 20th,{{sfn|Sedalia Weekly Bazoo|1879|p=2}} after Richards arrived in Mount Pleasant, he attended a ballroom dance, accompanied by two unidentified women.{{sfn|Sedalia Weekly Bazoo|1879|p=2}}{{sfn|Johnson|2000|p=152}}{{sfn|Nebraska State Journal|1879b|p=34}} Copies of a wanted poster featuring Richards had been circulated throughout the town recently, and a constable named McGrew recognized him from the poster. He enlisted the help of a penitentiary guard named Folge; the two men armed themselves with shotguns and set off after Richards. They found him walking through a field just outside of town with the two women. He was unarmed and quickly surrendered.{{sfn|Sedalia Weekly Bazoo|1879|p=2}}{{sfn|Walnut Valley Times|1879|p=2}}{{sfn|Quad-City Times|1878|p=1}} Richards claimed that he had spotted the officers approaching him; intending to fight his way out of the situation, he told the women to head back to town. They refused, however, so Richards chose to surrender.{{sfn|Atchison Daily Champion|1878|p=2}}{{sfn|The Workingman's Friend|1879|p=1}}{{sfn|Quad-City Times|1878|p=1}} He said that if the women had left, he would have avoided arrest:

{{Quote|text=If I hadn't had the two girls with me, I guess the constable, McGrew, who arrested me, would have been a dead man—either of us would, for I'd have shot.{{sfn|New York Times|1879a|p=2}}}}

Richards said that if he had escaped, he would have gone to Nebraska as he reasoned that it was the last place anyone would look for him.{{sfn|Atchison Daily Champion|1878|p=2}}{{sfn|The Workingman's Friend|1879|p=1}}{{sfn|Quad-City Times|1878|p=1}}

Some accounts differed about the date and place of Richards' arrest. The Wheeling Daily Intelligencer said that, upon arriving in a town near Mount Pleasant, Richards was identified by a former acquaintance, who detained him with the help of another person.{{sfn|Wheeling Daily Intelligencer|1878|p=2}} One source claims that Richards was arrested in early 1879 in Austin, Texas.{{sfn|Ramsland|2006|p=4}} One modern-day account reported that Richards, whom they listed under the name Samuel Richards, had been identified and captured by Pinkerton agents.{{sfn|Boyle|1999|p=230}} There were even conflicting descriptions of Richards' appearance. Newspapers described him as being approximately six feet two inches tall{{sfn|The Workingman's Friend|1879|p=1}}{{sfn|Quad-City Times|1878|p=1}}{{sfn|Nebraska State Journal|1879b|p=37}} and "heavily built", with dark hair and blue eyes.{{sfn|The Workingman's Friend|1879|p=1}}{{sfn|Sedalia Weekly Bazoo|1879|p=2}}{{sfn|Quad-City Times|1878|p=1}} However, the account of a Dr. Moreland, who performed a phrenological examination of Richards before his execution,{{efn|Phrenology supposedly predicts a person's mental traits by measuring bumps on the skull; influential in the 19th century, it is now considered pseudoscience.{{sfn|Stiles|2011|p=12}}}} conflicted with these descriptions of him. In his examination report, Moreland said Richards had light brown hair and dark gray eyes.{{sfn|Nebraska State Journal|1879b|p=38}} At his execution, one spectator later described Richards as having steel grey eyes that were almost bluish in color and dark brown hair.{{sfn|Johnson|2000|p=139}}

The Workingman's Friend, a Leavenworth, Kansas newspaper, reported that Chicago authorities received part of the reward.{{sfn|The Workingman's Friend|1879|p=1}}

After his arrest, Richards was jailed in Steubenville, Ohio. While there, he wrote two articles for the local newspaper, confessing to nine murders in three years.{{sfn|Wheeling Daily Intelligencer|1878|p=2}}{{sfn|New York Daily Herald|1878b|p=5}} Sheriff David Anderson of Buffalo County, Nebraska, and Sheriff Martin of Kearney County,{{sfn|Sedalia Weekly Bazoo|1879|p=3}}{{sfn|New York Times|1879a|p=2}}{{efn|One source listed Anderson and a Simon C. Ayer.{{sfn|Nebraska Senate Journal|1879|p=501}}}} both of whom had pursued Richards to Ohio, returned him to Nebraska.{{sfn|Sedalia Weekly Bazoo|1879|p=3}}{{sfn|New York Times|1879b|p=2}} Due to local public outrage, Anderson and Martin feared that Richards would be lynched if he were returned to any of the localities where he had committed his crimes,{{sfn|Atchison Daily Champion|1878|p=2}}{{sfn|Belmont Chronicle|1879|p=2}} so it was decided to avoid taking him to these places initially.{{sfn|Quad-City Times|1878|p=1}}

At the time of Richards' arrest, authorities suspected he was a member of a gang of outlaws who had plagued the state, or even the group's leader. Law enforcement was able to definitively link Richards to the nine murders to which he had confessed, and suggested that he might have killed even more,{{sfn|Atchison Daily Champion|1878|p=2}}{{sfn|Belmont Chronicle|1879|p=2}}{{sfn|The Workingman's Friend|1879|p=1}} something The Nebraska State Journal expressed doubt on.{{sfn|Nebraska State Journal|1878|p=2}}

Shortly before his trial, Richards predicted that he would be convicted and hanged for his crimes.{{sfn|Atchison Daily Champion|1878|p=2}}{{sfn|The Workingman's Friend|1879|p=1}}{{sfn|Quad-City Times|1878|p=1}} He was moved to a jail in Omaha on December 28, then transferred to Kearney by train. On December 30, a large crowd of enraged townsfolk gathered outside of the jail in Kearney where Richards was being kept. Fearing a lynching, authorities took "extra precautions" to ensure Richards' safety, as well as their own.{{sfn|Cincinnati Daily Star|1878|p=1}} While being moved to the depot, Richards was said to have been impressed by the large crowd, asking whether the whole town was there to see him.{{sfn|Sedalia Weekly Bazoo|1879|p=2}} Eventually, the crowd dispersed and there were no further incidents during the rest of his stay in Kearney.{{sfn|Cincinnati Daily Star|1878|p=1}}

Richards' trial began on January 16, 1879, in Minden, Nebraska, with Judge William Gaslin presiding. The prosecution was led by a district attorney named Scofield,{{sfn|Nebraska State Journal|1879b|p=35}} and Richards' defense was led by a lawyer named Savage.{{sfn|Nebraska State Journal|1879b|p=35}} Scofield laid out two indictments for murder in the first degree, for the killings of the Harlson family and Anderson. Richards pled not guilty, arguing that Anderson's killing was in self-defense, and therefore justifiable.{{sfn|Nebraska Advertiser|1879|p=2}}{{sfn|Johnson|2000|p=152}} The prosecution called seven witnesses to the stand.{{sfn|Nebraska State Journal|1879b|p=35}} They all testified to the state in which Anderson was found. Richards then was called to testify. When questioned by Scofield, he admitted to killing Anderson with a hammer after a heated argument but reiterated that he had done so in self-defense. Richards said that, although repeatedly warned not to do so, Anderson had reached for a nearby hatchet.{{sfn|Nebraska State Journal|1879b|p=36}} The prosecution then entered into evidence the hammer that had been used to kill Anderson. Richards identified it as the murder weapon.{{sfn|Nebraska State Journal|1879b|p=37}}

After two hours of deliberation,{{sfn|Nebraska Advertiser|1879|p=2}}{{sfn|Nebraska State Journal|1879b|p=33}} the jury found Richards guilty of the murders of the Harlsons and Anderson. He was sentenced to death by hanging,{{sfn|Nebraska State Journal|1879b|p=1}} and his execution date was set for April 26, 1879.{{sfn|Nebraska Advertiser|1879|p=2}}{{sfn|Johnson|2000|p=152}} Richards was described as being "cheerful and indifferent" to both the proceedings and his conviction.{{sfn|Nebraska State Journal|1879b|p=35}} The Sedalia Weekly Bazoo reported that, shortly after his conviction, Richards managed to smuggle a knife into his cell, to use it for killing himself, but the weapon was discovered by the authorities, and confiscated before he could use it.{{sfn|Sedalia Weekly Bazoo|1879|p=2}} No other newspaper records corroborate this story, however.

File:Stephen D. Richards in Coffin, 1879.jpg of Richards taken shortly after his execution]]

When Richards was returned to Nebraska, the Omaha Herald wrote that he "manifested supreme indifference to his lot, was perfectly willing to be brought direct to Kearney Junction and said he had as soon died one way as another."{{sfn|Omaha Herald|1878|p=2}} After Richards' conviction, Sheriff Martin announced that his execution in Minden would be open to the public, even though Martin feared the attendance of a large number of spectators could become violent.{{sfn|Nebraska State Journal|1879a|p=4}} To prevent a riot, an enclosure was constructed around the gallows to separate the expected crowd from Richards. However, tickets that allowed admittance into the restricted area were sold. Richards was allowed to invite people; he chose members of the press whom he had befriended while in prison.{{sfn|Sedalia Weekly Bazoo|1879|p=2}} One such ticket of admittance was recently discovered and is now in the collection of the Nebraska Historical Society.{{cite web |title=Frederick E. Dalrymple [RG0933.AM] |website=History Nebraska |url=https://history.nebraska.gov/collections/frederick-e-dalrymple-rg0933am |access-date=March 19, 2022 |archive-date=September 28, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210928100330/https://history.nebraska.gov/collections/frederick-e-dalrymple-rg0933am |url-status=live }}

Spectators at the execution were said to have numbered between 2,000{{sfn|Sedalia Weekly Bazoo|1879|p=3}} and 25,000.{{sfn|St. Louis Globe-Democrat|1879|p=4}} As the crowd became increasingly agitated, the authorities pleaded with them to stay outside the enclosure, but guards were unable to prevent the spectators from destroying the barrier.{{sfn|Sedalia Weekly Bazoo|1879|p=2}}{{sfn|St. Louis Globe-Democrat|1879|p=4}}{{sfn|Nebraska Advertiser|1879b|p=2}} One witness in the incident, a man named Rolf Johnson, later wrote that twenty to thirty people in the crowd cut the rope as the authorities tried to stop the crowd. The mob proceeded to pull the posts out of the ground, attempting to drag the makeshift barrier away while the guards were pulling the rope at the other end in what Johnson described as a "tug of war". The mob succeeded in pulling the rope away from the guards, and then proceeded to destroy the barrier completely.{{sfn|Johnson|2000|p=139}} At 1:00{{nbs}}p.m.,{{sfn|St. Louis Globe-Democrat|1879|p=4}} Richards was led to the gallows by Martin and his deputy; this pacified the crowd. Upon ascending the gallows, Richards launched into an impassioned defense of his actions. He again claimed that the killing of Anderson was in self-defense, and disavowed any involvement in the murders of the Harlson family;{{sfn|St. Louis Globe-Democrat|1879|p=4}} he claimed that he was the victim of a "wrongful conviction".{{sfn|Nebraska State Journal|1879b|p=46}}{{sfn|Johnson|2000|p=140}} He then said he had found the Lord, "made [his] peace with God",{{sfn|Sedalia Weekly Bazoo|1879|p=2}}{{sfn|Johnson|2000|p=140}} and "had faith in Christ", and asked the crowd to join him in singing the hymn "Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing".{{sfn|St. Louis Globe-Democrat|1879|p=4}} One such spectator documenting the events of the execution in his journal, observed that Richards appeared calm and collected during the entire ordeal.{{sfn|Johnson|2000|p=141}} Richards' final words were said to have been "Jesus be with me now!"{{sfn|Sedalia Weekly Bazoo|1879|p=3}}{{efn|A contemporary report recorded Richards' last words being "Sherrif meet me in Heaven".{{sfn|Johnson|2000|p=141}}}} Reverend W. Sanford Gee, who presided over the execution, later told reporters he hoped Richards' professions of religious salvation were genuine, but allowed that they might not have been.{{sfn|Sedalia Weekly Bazoo|1879|p=3}}

At 1:17 p.m.{{sfn|St. Louis Globe-Democrat|1879|p=4}}{{efn|An alternate account reported by The Sedalia Weekly Bazoo reported that Richards was led to the gallows at 12:48{{nbs}}p.m.{{sfn|Sedalia Weekly Bazoo|1879|p=2}} This report would also list the song as "There Is a Fountain Filled with Blood", and the time of his hanging as 1:10{{nbs}}p.m.{{sfn|Johnson|2000|p=140}}{{sfn|Sedalia Weekly Bazoo|1879|p=3}}{{sfn|Johnson|2000|p=140}}}} on April 26, 1879,{{sfn|Nebraska State Journal|1879b|p=1}}{{sfn|Newton|2006|p=399}} Richards was hanged. The St. Louis Globe-Democrat said it took fifteen minutes for him to die.{{sfn|St. Louis Globe-Democrat|1879|p=4}}{{efn|Other accounts gave the amount of time as being five to ten minutes.{{sfn|Johnson|2000|p=141}}{{sfn|Nebraska State Journal|1879b|p=48}}{{sfn|Saint Paul Globe|1879|p=7}}}} Richards was the first person in Nebraska's history to be executed,{{sfn|Johnson|2000|p=141}} since its incorporation into the United States in 1867.{{sfn|Olson|Naugle|Montag|2015|p=121}} Shortly after his execution, a photographer was able to capture a photograph of Richards' corpse propped inside a coffin.{{cite AV media|people=Bill Kelly (producer)|date=February 5, 2013|title=Until He Is Dead: A History Of Nebraska's Death Penalty|medium=Television production|publisher=NET News|url=https://video.netnebraska.org/video/net-nebraska-news-until-he-dead-history-nebraskas-death-penalty/|access-date=July 1, 2020|time=8:08–8:44|archive-date=June 29, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200629212935/https://video.netnebraska.org/video/net-nebraska-news-until-he-dead-history-nebraskas-death-penalty/|url-status=live}}

Local doctors hounded Richards before his execution, requesting him to donate his body for medical purposes. He refused,{{sfn|Sedalia Weekly Bazoo|1879|p=2}}{{sfn|Wilson|2014|p=12}} and was buried in Minden. Despite his gravesite being guarded,{{sfn|Wilson|2014|p=12}} his corpse was stolen the night after his execution—The Sedalia Weekly Bazoo suspected the doctors who had wanted to examine him{{sfn|Sedalia Weekly Bazoo|1879|p=3}}—but was returned to its resting place shortly thereafter.{{sfn|Wilson|2014|p=13}} Sometime later, his body was dug up once again; this time, Richards' bones were scattered on the streets of Kearney.{{sfn|St. Louis Globe-Democrat|1879|p=4}}{{sfn|Wilson|2014|p=13}} On November 1, 1882,{{sfn|Wilson|2014|p=13}} it was reported that Kearney County Gazette had obtained Richards' skull and placed it on display in the newspaper's office window.{{sfn|Wilson|2014|p=13}} This was the last reported mention of Richards' skull. Its present location and status is unknown.

File:Life and Confession of Stephen Dee Richards, 1879, (Front cover).png

After his arrest, many people described Richards as charismatic, commenting that he successfully concealed his dark nature under a polite, articulate, and handsome exterior.{{efn-lr|Attributed to multiple references:{{sfn|Sedalia Weekly Bazoo|1879|p=2}}{{sfn|Quad-City Times|1878|p=1}}{{sfn|Press and Daily Dakotaian|1878|p=5}}{{sfn|Nebraska State Journal|1879b|p=7}}}} A friend who accompanied Richards' autobiographer to his interviews said during one visit that Richards did not have the look of a murderer.{{sfn|Nebraska State Journal|1879b|p=7}} Contemporary observers remarked that Richards seemed to feel no guilt whatsoever about his crimes.{{sfn|Nebraska State Journal|1879b|p=1}}{{sfn|Wheeling Daily Intelligencer|1878|p=2}}{{sfn|Press and Daily Dakotaian|1878|p=5}} Numerous times between his arrest and his execution, Richards was asked why he had no empathy towards his victims or remorse for his crimes. Sometimes he simply refused to answer.{{sfn|Nebraska State Journal|1879b|p=41}} When he did choose to reply to this question, he gave conflicting responses. He usually cited his associations with people of questionable morals {{sfn|Nebraska State Journal|1879b|p=12}} and his time working at the Mount Pleasant Asylum as deleterious influences.{{sfn|New York Times|1879a|p=2}}{{sfn|Wheeling Daily Intelligencer|1878|p=1}} When The Nebraska State Journal questioned him about his lack of remorse for the heinous murders he had committed, particularly those of the Harlson family, Richards recounted an event from his childhood. He had been tasked to kill a litter of kittens and did so by bashing each of their heads against a tree. After he had killed all the kittens, he found that he felt no guilt about it, and found the killing "fun".{{sfn|Nebraska State Journal|1879b|pp=6–7}} Although some outlets, including modern-day author Michael Newton classified Richards as a "thrill killer",{{sfn|Newton|2006|p=399}} in interviews with the press Richards adamantly denied that he enjoyed inflicting pain upon others, claiming that in his younger years, other people had considered him to be kind.{{sfn|Nebraska State Journal|1879b|p=41}} Reporters who interviewed him after his arrest were often struck by his calm and collected behavior;{{sfn|Atchison Daily Champion|1878|p=2}}{{sfn|Belmont Chronicle|1879|p=2}}{{sfn|Quad-City Times|1878|p=1}} an article in the New York Daily Herald described him as being "carefree and cheerful".{{sfn|Walnut Valley Times|1879|p=2}}{{sfn|New York Daily Herald|1879|p=7}} In an interview for the Wheeling Daily Intelligencer, Richards said he knew he would be executed for his crimes, but that he was unafraid of death and was "ready to meet it".{{sfn|Wheeling Daily Intelligencer|1878|p=1}} When the jury sentenced him to death, he was said to have been unconcerned and in good spirits.{{sfn|Nebraska Advertiser|1879|p=2}}{{sfn|Nebraska State Journal|1879b|p=37}} The St. Louis Globe-Democrat (which doubted that he had committed nine murders) reported that Richards broke down during his final moments,{{sfn|St. Louis Globe-Democrat|1879|p=4}} but this was contradicted by other newspaper accounts of his execution.{{sfn|Sedalia Weekly Bazoo|1879|p=3}}{{sfn|Nebraska Advertiser|1879b|p=2}}

{{Quote box|align=right|quote=I have killed nine persons, and I can't say I feel any worse for it.|author=Stephen D. Richards{{sfn|Nebraska State Journal|1879b|p=1}}}}

Criminal psychology and profiling was not used as an investigative technique until the Jack the Ripper murders in 1888, nine years after Richards' execution,{{cite web|last=Bonn|first=Scott|title=Criminal Profiling: The Original Mind Hunter|url=https://www.psychologytoday.com/gb/blog/wicked-deeds/201712/criminal-profiling-the-original-mind-hunter|website=PsychologyToday.com|publisher=Sussex Publishers|access-date=April 2, 2020|date=December 4, 2017}} in 2018, forensic psychologist Katherine Ramsland referred to Richards as "The Old West’s Ted Bundy". Both Richards and Bundy used their charisma to manipulate others, and both displayed a complete lack of remorse for their crimes. Ramsland also wrote on the differences between the two men, noting that Bundy murdered for sexual gratification, whereas Richards had no preferred method of killing or type of victim; furthermore, Bundy fought his execution, while Richards was indifferent to his death sentence. She further described a possible reason for his violent behavior, citing a severe head injury that he received shortly before the killings started.{{cite web|last=Ramsland|first=Katherine|title=The Old West's Ted Bundy|url=https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/shadow-boxing/201801/the-old-west-s-ted-bundy|website=PsychologyToday.com|publisher=Sussex Publishers|access-date=April 14, 2020|date=January 18, 2018}} Richards himself briefly mentioned this injury to the Sedalia Weekly Bazoo, claiming that he received the injury while traveling with several companions in the spring of 1877.{{sfn|Sedalia Weekly Bazoo|1879|p=2}} When pressed about the circumstances that led to the injury, Richards refused to elaborate on the incident.{{sfn|Nebraska State Journal|1879b|p=41}}

Richards used various aliases during his travels. In an account of his life published in The Sedalia Weekly Bazoo, Richards admitted to having used the false names George Gallagher, F.A. Hoge, and William Hudson. Richards also admitted to corresponding with various acquaintances under the names D.J. Roberts, J. Littleton, and W. A. Littleton.{{sfn|Sedalia Weekly Bazoo|1879|p=2}}{{sfn|Nebraska State Journal|1879b|p=15}}

File:Stephen D. Richards Hanging, Nebraska, 1879.jpg.]]

At the time of Richards' arrest and execution, it was a popular belief that all criminals were of poor quality and limited education.{{sfn|Nebraska State Journal|1879b|p=9}} The horrific nature of his crimes gave Richards some notoriety which increased after his capture due in part to his not fitting with the public's preconception of criminals, with reporters and members of the public often struck by his charisma, good looks, his education, and outspokenness.{{sfn|Sedalia Weekly Bazoo|1879|p=2}}{{sfn|Quad-City Times|1878|p=1}} Richards was featured in a handful of books and periodicals, the first of these was The Philosophy of Insanity: Richard, the Nebraska Fiend by Dr. John Sanderson Christianson, published on February 9, 1879.{{sfn|Bell|1885|p=668}}{{sfn|New York Public Library|1911|p=303}}{{sfn|Kuhlman|1929|p=125}} A Nebraska State Journal interview with Richards before his execution was published in a trail pamphlet titled Life and Confession of Stephen Dee Richards, the Murderer of Nine Persons Executed at Minden, Nebraska, April 26, 1879. The pamphlet, published on May 1, 1879, five days after Richards' hanging, includes entries on other contemporary criminal cases as well.{{sfn|Nebraska State Journal|1879b|p=72}}{{sfn|McDade|1961|p=239}} After his execution, interest in Richards dwindled and he subsequently faded from public memory.

In modern times, Richards is now acknowledged as Nebraska's first documented serial killer.{{cite web|title='Paranormal Witness' 507 Nebraska Fiend aka Stephen Dee Richards|url=https://movietvtechgeeks.com/paranormal-witness-507-nebraska-fiend-aka-stephen-dee-richards-visits/|website=MovieTvTechGeeks.com|publisher=MTTG Staff|access-date=October 7, 2019|date=September 15, 2016|archive-date=July 11, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190711164559/https://movietvtechgeeks.com/paranormal-witness-507-nebraska-fiend-aka-stephen-dee-richards-visits/|url-status=live}} NET Nebraska's documentary Until He Is Dead: A History Of Nebraska's Death Penalty, featured Richards as a prime example of the public spectacle of the state's early executions; the documentary mistakenly mentioned him under his "Samuel Richards" alias. An episode of the SyFy Channel documentary series Paranormal Witness, titled "The Nebraska Fiend", features a family who is purportedly being tormented by Richards' spirit, with an unnamed actor portraying Richards.{{cite web|last=Enk|first=Bryan|title=Paranormal Witness News—Attend the Tale of Stephen Richards|url=https://www.syfy.com/paranormalwitness/blog/paranormal-witness-nebraska-fiend-stephen-richards|website=SyFy.com|access-date=October 7, 2019|date=September 14, 2016|archive-date=July 8, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190708180507/https://www.syfy.com/paranormalwitness/blog/paranormal-witness-nebraska-fiend-stephen-richards|url-status=live}}{{cite web|title=Paranormal Witness Recap—Nebraska Fiend|url=https://www.syfy.com/paranormalwitness/episodes/season/5/episode/7/nebraska-fiend|website=SyFy.com|publisher=SyFy Channel|access-date=April 8, 2020|date=September 14, 2016|archive-date=August 6, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180806151200/http://www.syfy.com/paranormalwitness/episodes/season/5/episode/7/nebraska-fiend|url-status=dead}} Richards was featured in the 2021 novel The Scarlet Pen written by Jennifer Uhlarik, as a part of the historical crime series True Colors. The novel is a fictionalized version of Richards' interaction with his fiancée, to whom he regularly sent letters.{{cite book|last=Uhlarik|first=Jennifer|title=The Scarlet Pen|date=July 1, 2021|publisher=Barbour Publishing|isbn=978-1-6435-2931-8|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=gMsrEAAAQBAJ}}

{{notelist-lr|30em}}

{{notelist|30em}}

{{reflist|30em}}

{{refbegin|30em|indent=yes}}

• {{cite book|title=Life and Confession of Stephen Dee Richards: The Murderer of Nine Persons, Executed at Minden, Nebraska, April 26, 1879|date=May 1, 1879|publisher=State Journal Co.|edition=1st|ref={{sfnref|Nebraska State Journal|1879b|pp=1–72}}|via=Internet Archive}}
• {{cite book|author=Anon.|title=Bulletin of the New York Public Library|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=5ptJAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA303|volume=15|year=1911|ref={{sfnref|New York Public Library|1911|p=303}}|via=Google Books}}
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{{refend}}

{{refbegin|30em|indent=yes}}

• {{cite news|title=A Chapter of Murders|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/37185412/stephen_dee_richards_new_york_daily/|access-date=October 15, 2019|newspaper=New York Daily Herald|date=December 14, 1878|location=New York, New York|page=7|via=Newspapers.com {{subscription required}}|ref={{sfnref|New York Daily Herald|1878a}}|archive-date=October 15, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191015163304/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/37185412/stephen_dee_richards_new_york_daily/|url-status=live}}
• {{cite news|title=The Journal|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/48359469/peter-anderson-murdered-stephen-d/|access-date=April 11, 2020|newspaper=The Columbus Journal|date=December 18, 1878|location=Columbus, Nebraska|page=2|via=Newspapers.com {{subscription required}}|ref={{sfnref|Columbus Journal|1878}}|archive-date=April 11, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200411180632/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/48359469/peter-anderson-murdered-stephen-d/|url-status=live}}
• {{cite news|title=A Vile Murderer: A Prisoner Confesses to Having Murdered Nine Persons Over Three Years|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/37226867/stephen_d_richards_new_york_daily/|access-date=October 30, 2019|newspaper=The New York Daily Herald|date=December 25, 1878|location=New York, New York|page=5|via=Newspapers.com {{subscription required}}|ref={{sfnref|New York Daily Herald|1878b}}|archive-date=October 30, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191030174822/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/37226867/stephen_d_richards_new_york_daily/|url-status=live}}
• {{cite news|title=The Steubenville Murderer Turns Out to be of Wheeling Origin|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/37488801/stephen-dee-richards-the-wheeling/|access-date=April 2, 2020|newspaper=The Wheeling Daily Intelligencer|date=December 25, 1878|location=Wheeling, West Virginia|page=2|via=Newspapers.com {{subscription required}}|ref={{sfnref|Wheeling Daily Intelligencer|1878}}|archive-date=April 17, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220417005228/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/37488801/stephen-dee-richards-the-wheeling/|url-status=live}}
• {{cite news|title=Friday, December 27, 1878|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/37488992/stephen-d-richards-the-nebraska-state/|access-date=April 6, 2020|newspaper=Nebraska State Journal|date=December 27, 1878|location=Lincoln, Nebraska|page=2|via=Newspapers.com {{subscription required}}|ref={{sfnref|Nebraska State Journal|1878}}|archive-date=April 6, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200406194643/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/37488992/stephen-d-richards-the-nebraska-state/|url-status=live}}
• {{cite news|title=Richards, the Murderer|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/37489307/stephen_d_richards_quadcity_times/|access-date=January 30, 2020|newspaper=Quad-City Times|date=December 28, 1878|location=Davenport, Iowa|page=1|via=Newspapers.com {{subscription required}}|ref={{sfnref|Quad-City Times|1878}}}}
• {{cite news|title=A Hardened Criminal|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/37489122/stephen-d-richards-the-atchison-daily/|access-date=April 6, 2020|newspaper=The Atchison Daily Champion|date=December 29, 1878|location=Atchison, Kansas|page=2|via=Newspapers.com {{subscription required}}|ref={{sfnref|Atchison Daily Champion|1878}}|archive-date=April 6, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200406194641/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/37489122/stephen-d-richards-the-atchison-daily/|url-status=live}}
• {{cite news|title=Richards Back in Nebraska|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/48360081/richards-back-in-nebraskathe/|access-date=April 16, 2020|newspaper=The Cincinnati Daily Star|date=December 30, 1878|location=Cincinnati, Ohio|page=1|via=Newspapers.com {{subscription required}}|ref={{sfnref|Cincinnati Daily Star|1878}}|archive-date=April 3, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230403223822/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/48360081/richards-back-in-nebraskathe/|url-status=live}}
• {{cite news|title=Richards, the Kearney County Murderer, Gives for the First Time Full Details of His Crimes|newspaper=The Omaha Herald|date=December 31, 1878|location=Omaha, Nebraska |via=Newspapers.com {{subscription required}}|ref={{sfnref|Omaha Herald|1878}}}}
• {{cite news|title=Nebraska's Boss Murderer: Richards on His Way to Kearney Junction, Where He Will End His Career|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/48358731/nebraskas-boss-murderer-stephen-d/|newspaper=Press and Daily Dakotaian|access-date=April 22, 2020|date=December 31, 1878|location=Yankton, South Dakota|page=5|via=Newspapers.com {{subscription required}}|ref={{sfnref|Press and Daily Dakotaian|1878}}|archive-date=April 17, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220417162207/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/48358731/nebraskas-boss-murderer-stephen-d/|url-status=live}}
• {{cite news|title=Richards, The Mount Pleasant Criminal|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/37489383/stephen-d-richards-belmont-chronicle/|access-date=April 6, 2020|newspaper=Belmont Chronicle|date=January 2, 1879|location=Saint Clairsville, Ohio|page=2|via=Newspapers.com {{subscription required}}|ref={{sfnref|Belmont Chronicle|1879}}|archive-date=April 6, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200406194639/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/37489383/stephen-d-richards-belmont-chronicle/|url-status=live}}
• {{cite news|title=The Nebraska Murderer: A Cool Confession of His Many Crimes|url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/20590119/|newspaper=The New York Times|date=January 2, 1879|location=New York, New York|page=2|via=Newspapers.com {{subscription required}}|ref={{sfnref|New York Times|1879a}}|access-date=January 7, 2020|archive-date=April 3, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230403223812/https://www.newspapers.com/image/20590119/|url-status=live}}
• {{cite news|title=Rande's Rival|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/37489246/stephen-d-richards-the-workingmans/|access-date=April 7, 2020|newspaper=The Workingman's Friend|date=January 3, 1879|location=Leavenworth, Kansas|page=1|via=Newspapers.com {{subscription required}}|ref={{sfnref|The Workingman's Friend|1879}}|archive-date=April 7, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200407194221/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/37489246/stephen-d-richards-the-workingmans/|url-status=live}}
• {{cite news|title=He Killed Children as He Would Rabbits|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/37184859/stephen_dee_richards_new_york_daily/|access-date=October 15, 2019|newspaper=New York Daily Herald|date=January 7, 1879|location=New York, New York|page=7|via=Newspapers.com {{subscription required}}|ref={{sfnref|New York Daily Herald|1879}}|archive-date=October 15, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191015163238/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/37184859/stephen_dee_richards_new_york_daily/|url-status=live}}
• {{cite news|title=A Daring Demon|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/48357656/a-daring-demon-stephen-d/|access-date=October 14, 2020|newspaper=Little Falls Transcript|date=January 9, 1879|location=Little Falls, Minnesota|page=2|via=Newspapers.com {{subscription required}}|ref={{sfnref|Little Falls Transcript|1879}}|archive-date=October 17, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201017223341/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/48357656/a-daring-demon-stephen-d/|url-status=live}}
• {{cite news|title=The Nebraska Fiend|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/32207600/stephen-dee-richards-is-the-nebraska/|access-date=April 9, 2020|newspaper=Sioux City Journal|date=January 17, 1879|location=Sioux City, Iowa|page=2|via=Newspapers.com {{subscription required}}|ref={{sfnref|Sioux City Journal|1879}}|archive-date=April 3, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230403230218/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/32207600/stephen-dee-richards-is-the-nebraska/|url-status=live}}
• {{cite news|title=State News and Notes|url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/?clipping_id=3743132&fcfToken=eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJmcmVlLXZpZXctaWQiOjczNjgxOTk3LCJpYXQiOjE1NjI4NjUwMDYsImV4cCI6MTU2Mjk1MTQwNn0.Of-5-JfeCnbQEy3AUugm7Tizt9sW9deCBs7Otnb2T00|access-date=July 11, 2019|newspaper=The Nebraska Advertiser|date=January 23, 1879|location=Brownville, Nebraska|page=2|via=Newspapers.com {{subscription required}}|ref={{sfnref|Nebraska Advertiser|1879}}}}
• {{cite news|title=The City|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/37489162/stephen-d-richards-the-nebraska-state/|access-date=April 6, 2020|newspaper=Nebraska State Journal|date=April 26, 1879|location=Lincoln, Nebraska|page=4|via=Newspapers.com {{subscription required}}|ref={{sfnref|Nebraska State Journal|1879a}}|archive-date=April 6, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200406194638/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/37489162/stephen-d-richards-the-nebraska-state/|url-status=live}}
• {{cite news|title=The Craven Choked|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/47865316/stephen-richards-st-louis/|access-date=April 8, 2020|newspaper=St. Louis Globe-Democrat|date=April 27, 1879|location=St. Louis, Missouri|page=4|via=Newspapers.com {{subscription required}}|ref={{sfnref|St. Louis Globe-Democrat|1879}}|archive-date=April 3, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230403224120/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/47865316/stephen-richards-st-louis/|url-status=live}}
• {{cite news|title=Scenes at a Hanging|url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/20358638/?terms=Stephen%2BRichards|access-date=October 15, 2019|newspaper=New York Times|date=April 27, 1879|location=New York, New York|page=2|via=Newspapers.com {{subscription required}}|ref={{sfnref|New York Times|1879b}}|archive-date=April 3, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230403230223/https://www.newspapers.com/image/20358638/?terms=Stephen+Richards|url-status=live}}
• {{cite news|title=Crimes and Casualties: Execution of Richards|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/48570974/crimes-and-casualties-execution-of/|access-date=May 28, 2020|newspaper=The Saint Paul Globe|date=April 27, 1879|location=Saint Paul, Minnesota|page=7|via=Newspapers.com {{subscription required}}|ref={{sfnref|Saint Paul Globe|1879}}|archive-date=April 3, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230403223807/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/48570974/crimes-and-casualties-execution-of/|url-status=live}}
• {{cite news|author=T.B. Murdock|title=Stephen D. Richards|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/37488635/stephen-d-richards-walnut-valley/|access-date=April 2, 2020|newspaper=Walnut Valley Times|date=April 27, 1879|location=El Dorado, Kansas|page=2|via=Newspapers.com {{subscription required}}|ref={{sfnref|Walnut Valley Times|1879}}|archive-date=April 17, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220417162208/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/37488635/stephen-d-richards-walnut-valley/|url-status=live}}
• {{cite news|title=The Advertiser|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/48356756/stephen-d-richards-hanged-nebraska/|access-date=April 16, 2020|newspaper=The Nebraska Advertiser|date=May 1, 1879b|location=Brownville, Nebraska|page=2|via=Newspapers.com {{subscription required}}|ref={{sfnref|Nebraska Advertiser|1879b}}|archive-date=April 3, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230403230216/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/48356756/stephen-d-richards-hanged-nebraska/|url-status=live}}
• {{cite news|title=Dead and Damned: Stephen D. Richards Hanged|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/48357093/dead-and-damned-stephen-d-richards/|access-date=April 8, 2020|newspaper=The Sedalia Weekly Bazoo|date=May 6, 1879|location=Sedalia, Missouri|pages=2–3|via=Newspapers.com {{subscription required}}|ref={{sfnref|Sedalia Weekly Bazoo|1879}}|archive-date=April 3, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230403230209/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/48357093/dead-and-damned-stephen-d-richards/|url-status=live}}

{{refend}}

{{refbegin|30em}}

• {{cite book|last=Dempsey|first=Tim|title=Well I'll Be Hanged: Early Capital Punishment in Nebraska|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=WzTkoAEACAAJ|date=May 25, 2014|publisher=Sunbury Press, Incorporated|isbn=978-1-62006-336-1|via=Google Books}}
• {{cite book|first=Gordon|last=Bakken|title=Invitation to an Execution: A History of the Death Penalty in the United States|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=pExe_keERQMC&pg=PT442|date=November 16, 2010|publisher=University of New Mexico Press|isbn=978-0-8263-4858-6|via=Google Books}}
• {{cite book|last=Ramsland|first=Katherine|title=The Human Predator: A Historical Chronicle of Serial Murder and Forensic Investigation|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=VtduoGffUgEC&pg=PT63|date=February 5, 2013|publisher=Penguin Publishing Group|isbn=978-1-101-61905-6|via=Google Books}}
• {{cite book|last=Uhlarik|first=Jennifer|title=The Scarlet Pen|date=2021|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=o7X_zQEACAAJ|publisher=Barbour Publishing|isbn=978-1-643-52929-5|via=Google Books|access-date=March 28, 2022|archive-date=March 28, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220328003631/https://books.google.com/books?id=o7X_zQEACAAJ|url-status=live}}

{{refend}}

{{Authority control}}

{{good article}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Richards, Stephen}}

Category:1856 births

Category:1879 deaths

Category:19th-century executions of American people

Category:American male criminals

Category:American murderers of children

Category:Axe murder

Category:Executed American mass murderers

Category:Executed American serial killers

Category:Family murders in the United States

Category:Fugitives wanted by the United States

Category:Outlaws of the American Old West

Category:People convicted of murder by Nebraska

Category:People executed by Nebraska by hanging

Category:People from Mount Pleasant, Ohio

Category:People from Wheeling, West Virginia

Category:People executed by public hanging

Category:Serial killers from Iowa

Category:Serial killers from Nebraska

Category:Uxoricides