Richard H. Bickerstaff was born on February 14, 1918 to Frank Jeter Bickerstaff and Bessie Bradford Bickerstaff. He was born in the family home at Brickyard, Alabama, the second of three sons, including his brothers Frank J. Bickerstaff Jr. and Robert Bradford Bickerstaff. He married Margaret Matheson Flournoy in June 1941. She died in 1998. They had three children; Mary Flournoy Bickerstaff Bradley, Richard Howard Bickerstaff, Jr. and Walker Reynolds Bickerstaff. Richard attended Brickyard School in Brickyard, Alabama and Columbus area schools. He graduated from Woodward Academy in College Park, Georgia and attended Auburn University. Richard died February 20, 2014 at the age of 96 and is buried at the Bickerstaff family cemetery at Broken Arrow in Russell County, Alabama.

Richard H. Bickerstaff was descended from the pioneer Bickerstaff and Bradford families, which had deep roots in east Alabama and north Florida. Richard Bickerstaff led his family owned brick manufacturing business until its sale to an Australian firm Boral Ltd. in 1995. Bickerstaff Clay Products was founded in Russell County, Alabama in 1885 and was reportedly the fifth-largest clay brick maker when it was sold. A history of the company on the Boral website says that Bickerstaff Clay products came about when brothers William and James Bickerstaff purchased property on what is now Brickyard Road in Phenix City from the Abercrombie family. The land had been obtained by the U.S. government in 1832 through a treaty with the Creek Indians, with the tribe being moved westward and the Abercrombie family starting a cotton plantation on the site, which included a small brickworks. The Bickerstaffs turned their focus to brick manufacturing, with their families being born and raised on the land for decades. Improvements through the years led the company to start a subsidiary that made fork lift attachments to move bricks without pallets. This equipment was sold to other brick companies globally.

During his long career, he served as chairman of the Brick Institute of America and continued to be consulted by people in the industry on best practices. He served for many years on the Board of Directors of Synovus Financial Corporation and Total Systems Services, on the board of Columbus Bank and Trust, Columbus Mills and Tom’s Foods. He also operated Broken Arrow Land Company with his son Richard H. Bickerstaff Jr . In 2009 he led an eight person oversight committee on the $ 14.3 million renovation of First Presbyterian Church in Columbus. Throughout his long life he was active in many charities and civic activities.