TRENTON – Albert Dewey Richards, M.D., 81, of Trenton, died Sunday, Aug. 10, after a long battle with cancer.

He was born March 4, 1927, in Industry, the son of Albert and Nellie (Booker) Richards. He graduated from Farmington High School in 1945, and then served in the U.S. Army Airborne Division from 1946 to 1948. Dewey graduated from University of Maine in 1956, Tufts Medical School in 1960, and interned at Maine Medical Center in Portland.

He opened his general medical practice in Bridgton in 1961, also servicing Bridgton Academy. He helped design the Northern Cumberland Memorial Hospital and was president of the board of directors and chief of staff. He was founder and president of MedNow Urgent Care Centers throughout Maine, ensuring patients walk-in, prompt and thorough medical care.

Thereafter, he was research associate at Dartmouth School of Medicine, associate professor at Tufts Medical School, director of Eastern Maine Medical Center’s family practice program, chief of family practice service at EMMC, professor at Eastern Virginia Medical School in Norfolk, residency assistance program consultant in Kansas City, Mo., and was on the executive committee at EVMC, Norfolk, Va.

He retired from medical practice in 1993 to travel, play golf and tournament bridge, fly his plane, work in his wood lot in Bridgton and continue medical research. During his retirement, he also authored several books, which include medical mysteries, a biography and an autobiography. He was a gifted researcher and teacher who enjoyed sharing his knowledge and skills with others.

He is survived by his wife, Loretta Maychild Richards of Trenton; his siblings, Robert of Farmington, Alonzo and wife, Charity, of Dedham and Patricia Campbell and husband, Tom, of Littleton, N.H.; his children, Susan Finch of Saco, Michael and wife, Pam, of Peaks Island, Donna Cotton of Kansas City, Cathy Hill of Oklahoma City, Daniel and wife, Roseana, of Suwanee, Ga., John and wife, Sherri, of Simpsonville, S.C., Lindy Sewell Cluff of Wells, Sherman Sewell and wife, Kelly, and Alan Sewell and wife, Sheila, all of Nashua, N.H., Tom Sewell and wife, Tiffany, of Haverhill, Mass., and Kurt Sewell of Biddeford; stepchildren, Julie Tilden and husband, Duane Crawford, of Lamoine, Robert Tilden and wife, Lori, of Lamoine, Andrea Tilden and husband, Eric Thomas, of Waterville and Sarah Tilden-Warner and husband, Scott, of Lincoln. He will be greatly missed by his siblings, children, 31 grandchildren, nieces, nephews and the many people he touched over the course of his lifetime.

He was predeceased by his first wife, Emily Gamage Richards in 1989; his brother, John; and his sister, Shirley Roberts.