He then sailed to England, where he worked until late 1884 for London architect Robert William Edis, then engaged on an extension to Sandringham House.

In August 1886, his uncle dissolved his partnership, and the younger Sturgis returned to Boston to help manage the office.

[1] He was responsible for completing his uncle's unfinished works, including the Church of the Advent and the new building of the Boston Athletic Association.

His surviving son, Richard Clipston Sturgis Jr., was born March 17, 1884, at Canterbury in Kent, England.

After retiring from active practice, Sturgis moved to Portsmouth, New Hampshire, where the family had formerly spent only their summers.

Sturgis was asked to design the campus when third director of the school Edward Allen[15] found its current home in Watertown, Massachusetts.

Sturgis chose the popular style of the time called English Collegiate Gothic when designing the campus.

Allen required Sturgis to incorporate a "family-style" cottage system implemented by Samuel Gridley Howe.

This cottage system was meant to replicate the idea of a family setting and help teach student independent living skills (Activities of Daily Life).