John Richardson, who did much of his research at the Library of Congress, discussed his book, on Alexander Robey "Boss" Shepherd, the District of Columbia's powerful head of public works from 1871 until 1873 and D.C. governor in 1873 and 1874. Shepherd was a self-made man who accrued his fortune in the plumbing and gas-fitting trade, which inspired his fight to establish the city's physical infrastructure at a time when opposition forces were calling for the nation's capital to be moved to the Mississippi Valley, closer to the center of the country. Speaker Biography: John Richardson divided a 45-year career between the nonprofit sector and the U.S. government, focusing on Palestinian issues and the Muslim world. A graduate of Williams College with a master's degree from George Washington University, he was president of American Near East Refugee Aid and the Center for Middle East Policy. Later, as an officer with the Central Intelligence Agency, he served in Pakistan, Jordan and Indonesia before retiring in 2005. For transcript and more information, visit www.loc.gov/today/cyberlc/feature_wdesc.php?rec=7712

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