Howard F. ("Capt. Pete") Richardson's Obituary
Howard Franklin (Capt. Pete) Richardson
Bozman- Howard Franklin “ Capt. Pete†Richardson of Bozman, died on Sunday, February 13, 2011 at Genesis Health Care “The Pinesâ€. He was 108 years old . Born on October 16, 1902 in Bozman, Md., He was the son of the late William Richardson and Lilly (McQuay) Richardson. Pete attended a two room schoolhouse in Bozman that went to the eighth grade. He then went to work on a farm earning $15 a month. Two years later he began working on the water. Originally crabs were sold by the barrel for $1.25. In 1920 he sold oysters for .35-.50 a bushel. In 1924 he played Class D baseball for Frank Baker’s Eastern Shore League a minor league system for Connie Mack’s Philadelphia Athletics. Pete’s battery mate was Jimmy Fox. He started carving decoys in 1917 for hunting purposes. In 1930 he carved miniatures that sold for $2.00 a pair. He continued to carve and work on the water until he took employment during WWII at Bethlehem Steel as a Ships Carpenter. In 1944 he returned to his hometown of Bozman where he began carving full size decoys to sell. It’s estimated that Captain Pete carved over 1000 decoys by hand until age 100. He has exhibited at the Waterfowl Festival and The Oxford Museum. From 1962 to 1988 he was employed by Mr. & Mrs. Leroy Brooks as a Caretaker at Dunn Cove Farm in Sherwood.
Capt. Pete is survived by his son; Howard Stanley Richardson of St. Michaels, two grandchildren Jeff Richardson and his wife Tracey, Sherri-Jo Atkinson and her husband Jamie, three great grand children Ryan Atkinson, Christopher Atkinson and Melissa Richardson and several nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his wife Nellie Gowe, five siblings, Thomas Richardson, Edith Lednum, Clara Cummings, Dora Fairbank and Ida Jones.
A memorial service will be held at 11:00 am Saturday Feb. 19 at the Bozman United Methodist Church., Bozman, Md. Memorial contributions can be made to Home Run Baker PO Box 281, Royal Oak, MD 21662. Arrangements are by the Hurley & Ostrowski Funeral Home P.A. of St. Michaels.
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