John Howard Richards was born May 21, 1916 in Caerphilly, Wales. He enrolled at the University of Wales in 1934 and graduated in 1938 with a B.Sc. in Geography. Richards remained in Wales the following year to teach at a private school, but spent next two years as a meteorologist in the United Kingdom and Canada. He joined the Canadian army, serving in Europe from 1942-1946. After his discharge, Richards enrolled at the University of Toronto; in 1947, he received his MA. Richards taught at Utica College of Syracuse University and the University of Manitoba before returning to the University of Toronto, where he earned his PhD in 1956. He briefly joined the staff of the Royal Military College of Canada prior to coming to the University of Saskatchewan in 1960 as Professor and Head of the newly formed Department of Geography. He was to remain in that post until his retirement in 1979. He was named Professor Emeritus in 1983. During his tenure, Richards developed academic programs in Geography and the interdisciplinary programs of Land Use, Environmental Studies and Regional and Urban Development and Planning. He was the editor of the first "Atlas of Saskatchewan" and the author of "Saskatchewan Geography" and "Saskatchewan: A Geographical Appraisal," among other publications. Richards served on several Boards including the Saskatoon District Planning Commission and the Grasslands National Park Board of Enquiry. He was also Director of the Saskatchewan Land Capability Inventory and was President of the Canadian Association of Geographers. Howard died in Saskatoon on September 25, 2003.