Richard Thatcher (March 23, 1846 – November 28, 1909) was an American educator, and Civil War veteran.

At the age of 15 he left to join the Union Army as a member of the 111th Illinois Volunteer Infantry Regiment.

[2] He was captured on July 22, 1864, and sent to the notorious Andersonville Prison, where he began to have chronic respiratory issues.

They had five children, four daughters of whom survived infancy, Edna, Mae, Blanche, and Ethel.

[1][2] Thatcher died on November 28, 1909, in Edmond, Oklahoma from complications from tuberculosis.