John S. Richards

John S. Richards (February 16, 1892 – December 3, 1979) was a librarian who served as the president of the American Library Association from 1955 to 1956. He subsequently held a number of librarian jobs, including positions at the Idaho Technology Institute from 1920 to 1923, the Washington State Normal School from 1923 to 1926, the University of California, Berkeley Library from 1926 to 1934, and the University of Washington Library from 1934 to 1942.

Richards became the head librarian of the Seattle Public Library in 1942. Throughout his time at Seattle Public Library, he urged Seattle citizens to provide greater funding for the library, especially after the Carnegie-built Central Library was damaged and seriously weakened by an April 1949 earthquake; finally, in 1956, Seattle voters approved a $5 million library bond to replace the structure. He moved to Carmel, California in 1964 and died during a visit to Seattle on December 3, 1979.

Richards served as president of the American Library Association from 1955 to 1956. Richards spent much time representing ALA in congressional committee meetings; during his term, the Library Services Act was passed into law, funding public libraries in rural areas.