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A+History
History · Richmond

Richmond dates to 1806, and 30% of its homes were built before 1940

More historic than 96% of U.S. towns · #52 of 593 in Indiana. What drives it

18 places in town are on the National Register, among them six historic districts with 1,242 buildings between them. Below: 27 old photos and papers, maps from 1886 on, and the census since 1840.

1806founded
18on the National Register
30%homes built before 1940
27old photos & papers
52famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Richmond’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Richmond began

When was Richmond founded?

1806

Richmond dates its founding to 1806 (Wikidata). The census first counted it in 1840.

First census: 2,070 in 18402020 census: 35,720220 years

How historic is Richmond?

A+

More historic than 96% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1818.The full story ↓
History grade

What drives Richmond’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Richmond is more historic than 96% of U.S. towns, #52 of 593 in Indiana. All 3 inputs are above most U.S. towns; its National Register listings ranks highest and its age lowest.

A+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Richmond’s overall grade.
Founding era1806, from Wikidata: founded 1776–1849, an older era than 75% of U.S. townsA−Homes built before 194029.6% of homes (±2.9) · typical IN town 14.4% · U.S. 8.4%A−National Register18 listings, 1,258 historic buildings, 354 per 10,000 residents · typical IN town 7.9 · U.S. 2.4A+
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 96%
NewerOlder
Indiana towns of 2,500+ (593)Ahead of 91%

Indiana towns list more on the Register than most of the country (a typical Indiana town has 7.9 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Richmond’s 354 sits above most of its state (93% of Indiana towns have fewer) while its 1,258 historic buildings outnumber those of 99% of U.S. towns.

How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from A to A+. The pre-1940 share (±2.9 points) is firm at this size. Two sources give 1806.

Founding year: Wikidata (other dates in Quick answers). Homes: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register: National Park Service, May 2026 list; each listing counted once (boundary changes and added documentation belong to their listing), and a historic district counts its contributing buildings. How TownRatings grades history →

What stands out about Richmond’s past

Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.

A historic districtThe Old Richmond Historic District takes in 769 historic buildings.A town in old photos27 old photos, postcards and papers, 1865–1933.Shrank, then grewLost a third of its people between 1840 and 1850, then grew more than tenfold.Landmarks on the Register18 places on the National Register.
★ What stands out · On the National Register

18 listings protect 1,258 historic buildings

The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving. Boundary changes and added documentation are counted with their listing.

places listed
18
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
1,258
each building in a district counts
first listed
1974
Old Richmond Historic District
Old Richmond Historic DistrictStarr Historic DistrictBethel A.M.E. Church, built 1854Andrew F. Scott HouseHicksite Friends Meetinghouse (Wayne County Museum)Earlham College ObservatoryWayne County CourthouseMurray Theater, built 1909Henry and Alice Gennett HouseLeland HotelEast Main Street-Glen Miller Park Historic DistrictRichmond Railroad Station Historic DistrictMary Birdsall HouseDavid Worth Dennis House, built 1895Reeveston Place Historic DistrictRichmond Downtown Historic DistrictRichmond High SchoolOliver P. and Mary Alice Gaar House
BuildingsDistricts

Architectural styles listings

Italianate6
Queen Anne4
Greek Revival3
Victorian2
Second Empire2
Colonial Revival2
Old Richmond Historic DistrictFederal
Starr Historic DistrictVictorian
Bethel A.M.E. ChurchNeo-Classical · Built 1854
Andrew F. Scott HouseItalianate
Hicksite Friends Meetinghouse (Wayne County Museum)Building
Earlham College ObservatoryVictorian
Wayne County CourthouseRichardsonian Romanesque
Murray TheaterBeaux Arts · Built 1909
All 18 listings
Henry and Alice Gennett HouseBuilding · listed 1983Leland HotelBuilding · listed 1985East Main Street-Glen Miller Park Historic DistrictDistrict · listed 1986Richmond Railroad Station Historic DistrictDistrict · listed 1987Mary Birdsall HouseBuilding · listed 1999David Worth Dennis HouseBuilding · listed 2001Reeveston Place Historic DistrictDistrict · listed 2003Richmond Downtown Historic DistrictDistrict · listed 2011Richmond High SchoolBuilding · listed 2015Oliver P. and Mary Alice Gaar HouseBuilding · listed 2017

National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.

By decade

Richmond, decade by decade

7 decades in the archive, from the 1860s to the 1930s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1860s–1890s8 items
Glass conservatory, Richmond, Indianac. 1865Glass conservatory, Richmond, IndianaGlass conservatory, Richmond, Indianac. 1865Glass conservatory, Richmond, IndianaThe city of Richmond, Indiana 18841884The city of Richmond, Indiana 1884Starr Piano Factory(Cropped)1893Starr Piano Factory(Cropped)StarrLogo1893StarrLogoScene in courtroom, Morrison Will case at Richmond, Indiana, in 1895. The longest jury trial in the U.S. up to that tim…1895Scene in courtroom, Morrison Will case at Richmond, I…Scene in courtroom, Morrison Will case at Richmond, Indiana, in 1895. The longest jury trial in the U.S. up to that tim…1895Scene in courtroom, Morrison Will case at Richmond, I…Noah H. Hutton House1896Noah H. Hutton House
1900s–1920s5 items
Bridgland-Gaar Mansion1906Bridgland-Gaar MansionStarr-showroom-cropped1906Starr-showroom-croppedPostcardRichmondINRichmondHighSchoolCirca1911c. 1911PostcardRichmondINRichmondHighSchoolCirca1911PostcardStarr-Piano-ad(cropped)1911Starr-Piano-ad(cropped)Morton HS basketball-19241924Morton HS basketball-1924
1930s14 items
Kinney's Motel, U. S. Highway 40... 3 miles west of... Richmond, Indiana (87954)c. 1930Kinney's Motel, U. S. Highway 40... 3 miles west of..…1008 J STREET - Workers' Cottages, Bound by South Second, Eleventh, A, and E Streets19331008 J STREET - Workers' Cottages, Bound by South Sec…218-20 S. ELEVENTH ST. - Workers' Cottages, Bound by South Second, Eleventh, A, and E Streets1933218-20 S. ELEVENTH ST. - Workers' Cottages, Bound by …229 S. SECOND STREET - Workers' Cottages, Bound by South Second, Eleventh, A, and E Streets1933229 S. SECOND STREET - Workers' Cottages, Bound by So…229 S. SECOND STREET - Workers' Cottages, Bound by South Second, Eleventh, A, and E Streets1933229 S. SECOND STREET - Workers' Cottages, Bound by So…230 S. THIRD STREET - Workers' Cottages, Bound by South Second, Eleventh, A, and E Streets1933230 S. THIRD STREET - Workers' Cottages, Bound by Sou…232 S. THIRD STREET - Workers' Cottages, Bound by South Second, Eleventh, A, and E Streets1933232 S. THIRD STREET - Workers' Cottages, Bound by Sou…236 S. THIRD STREET - Workers' Cottages, Bound by South Second, Eleventh, A, and E Streets1933236 S. THIRD STREET - Workers' Cottages, Bound by Sou…240 AND 236 S. THIRD ST. - Workers' Cottages, Bound by South Second, Eleventh, A, and E Streets1933240 AND 236 S. THIRD ST. - Workers' Cottages, Bound b…305-07 S. EIGHTH ST. - Workers' Cottages, Bound by South Second, Eleventh, A, and E Streets1933305-07 S. EIGHTH ST. - Workers' Cottages, Bound by So…305-07 S. EIGHTH ST. - Workers' Cottages, Bound by South Second, Eleventh, A, and E Streets1933305-07 S. EIGHTH ST. - Workers' Cottages, Bound by So…400 S. ELEVENTH ST. - Workers' Cottages, Bound by South Second, Eleventh, A, and E Streets1933400 S. ELEVENTH ST. - Workers' Cottages, Bound by Sou…403 S. E STREET - Workers' Cottages, Bound by South Second, Eleventh, A, and E Streets1933403 S. E STREET - Workers' Cottages, Bound by South S…407 S. SIXTH ST. - Workers' Cottages, Bound by South Second, Eleventh, A, and E Streets1933407 S. SIXTH ST. - Workers' Cottages, Bound by South …
1940s–1990snothing yet
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
Add from your album
People over time

Richmond, census by census

05,00010,00015,00020,00025,00030,00035,00040,00045,00018501900195020002,070 in 1840Low: 1,443

Lost a third of its people between 1840 and 1850, then grew more than tenfold.

19 censuses, 1840–2020.

U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Richmond’s Wikipedia page.

The story

How Richmond came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Richmond.

Read it all →

In 1806 the first European Americans in the area, Quaker families from the state of North Carolina, settled along the East Fork of the Whitewater River. This was part of a general westward migration in the early decades after the American Revolution. John Smith and Jeremiah Cox were two of the earliest settlers, and the area that was to become Richmond was originally divided into the towns of Smithville and Coxborough (also known as Jericho). Richmond is still home to several Quaker institutions, including Friends United Meeting, Richmond Friends School, Earlham College and the Earlham School of Religion.

ChaptersDowntown explosion

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

From the old history books

What they wrote about Richmond in 1917

Passages that mention Richmond, cut from the printed page as they were published.

of the same : “An Ordinance Concerning the Hebrew Society of Richmond : “Be it ordained by the president and the Common Council of the City of Richmond, in Common Hall assembled, and it is hereby ordained by the authority of the same, That one acre of land belonging to the City of Richmond, lying u…
The history of the Jews of Richmond from 1769 to 19171917 · page 283Read the page →
Read the text

of the same : “An Ordinance Concerning the Hebrew Society of Richmond : “Be it ordained by the president and the Common Council of the City of Richmond, in Common Hall assembled, and it is hereby ordained by the authority of the same, That one acre of land belonging to the City of Richmond, lying upon Shockoe Hill, as laid off and designated in a plot of the said land made by Richard Young, surveyor of the City of Richmond, and the same is hereby vested in the congregation called in

Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
I. Cohen, their respective heirs (lawfully begotten according to the law of Moses) and assigns forever, to be equally divided among them share and share alike, that is to say the half acre of ground situate in the City of Richmond aforesaid in the rear of a lot of Abraham Cooley — two lots situate …
The history of the Jews of Richmond from 1769 to 19171917 · page 333Read the page →
Read the text

I. Cohen, their respective heirs (lawfully begotten according to the law of Moses) and assigns forever, to be equally divided among them share and share alike, that is to say the half acre of ground situate in the City of Richmond aforesaid in the rear of a lot of Abraham Cooley — two lots situate in the City of Richmond aforesaid adjoining Rutherf orths — my house and lot of ground thereto belonging occupied by Shuffler and also a bake house situate in the main street in Richmond aforesaid opposite to I. Isaac’s house — Two lots of ground situate in

Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.

Scans and text from the Internet Archive. Books published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.

Timeline

Richmond, 1806 to 1960

Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.

  1. 19th century
  2. 1806
    FoundingRichmond is established
  3. 1818Post officeThe Richmond post office opens
  4. 1854BuiltBethel A.M.E. Church is built
  5. 1865In the archiveGlass conservatory, Richmond, Indiana
  6. 1884In the archiveThe city of Richmond, Indiana 1884
  7. 1893In the archiveStarr Piano Factory(Cropped)
  8. 1895BuiltDavid Worth Dennis House is built
  9. 20th century
  10. 1903Born hereNorman Foster is born here
  11. 1906In the archiveBridgland-Gaar Mansion
  12. 1906Post officeThe Earlham post office opens
  13. 1909BuiltMurray Theater is built
  14. 1910Born hereMary Haas is born here
  15. 1911In the archivePostcardRichmondINRichmondHighSchoolCirca1911
  16. 1923Born hereNed Rorem is born here
  17. 1924In the archiveMorton HS basketball-1924
  18. 1948Post officeThe Earlham post office closes
  19. 1960On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  20. 1960CensusPopulation peaks at 44,149
On the map

Richmond on the map, 1960 to 1981

Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Richmond. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.

Richmond on the 1960 USGS mapRichmond on the 1981 USGS map1960Richmond sheet · 1:24,000

U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Richmond.

Every building

Richmond, building by building, 1886–1909

Fire insurance maps drew every building, what it was made of and what it was used for, so insurers could price the risk of fire. Pick a year, then a sheet.

Richmond fire insurance map, 1886, sheet 21886Sheet 2 of 19
Edition
BrickWoodStone

Sanborn Map Company, via the Library of Congress. Editions published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.

Then & now

Stand where they stood

No then-and-now pairs yet. Take a photo from the same spot as an old one and they appear here side by side.

Glass conservatory, Richmond, Indiana
Retake this viewGlass conservatory, Richmond, Indiana, c. 1865

Find the spot, match the angle, and add your photo. It becomes the first then-and-now pair on Richmond’s page.

Retake this view · +15
Famous people

52 famous people were born in Richmond

Writers, athletes, leaders and more, ranked by how widely they’re known.

See all →
M
Mary HaasAmerican linguist; studied historical linguisti… · b. 1910
Desmond BaneAmerican basketball player · b. 1998
Norman FosterAmerican film director and actor · b. 1903
Ned RoremAmerican composer and diarist · b. 1923
James MooneyAmerican ethnographer · b. 1861
Rich MullinsAmerican Christian Musician · b. 1955
Places that used to be

Lost post offices, old corners and burying grounds

Richmond’s post office has been open since 1818. Another post office, Earlham, opened and closed inside today’s town.

Richmond
1818–today
Earlham
1906–1948
18101920today
Hamlets and corners on the map
East HavenGreenwoodSouth Richmond
5cemeteries and burying grounds inside Richmond
EarlhamKingLutheraniaRidgeSaint Andrew

US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

Help out

Finish Richmond’s story

Most archives stop around 1920. The photos from after that are in family albums, not libraries.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
4 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Retake an old viewGlass conservatory, Richmond, Indiana: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
Stories next door

History across the town line

Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.

Spring GroveIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townWayne Township20 historic placesA+Center Township7 historic placesA

Questions about Richmond’s history

What year was Richmond founded?

In 1806, according to Wikidata. Richmond’s post office opened in 1818, and the census of 1840 counted 2,070 people here.

How does Richmond rank for history?

Richmond is more historic than 96% of U.S. towns, #52 of 593 in Indiana. The History grade combines the town’s founding era, the share of homes built before 1940 and its National Register listings. It’s a character grade, so it isn’t part of the overall grade. How it works.

What is on the National Register in Richmond?

18 listings: 12 buildings and 6 historic districts with 1,242 contributing buildings. 1,258 historic buildings in all.

How old are the homes in Richmond?

30% of Richmond’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±2.9 points), against a typical 14% for an Indiana town; the median home was built in 1957.

Memory lane

What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.

Town Square →
Start a conversation
Sources

Where this page comes from

Founding dates: Wikidata, Wikipedia, the U.S. post office records of Blevins & Helbock (CC0) and the Census. Homes by year built: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register of Historic Places: National Park Service (list of May 22, 2026). Old photos, postcards and papers: Wikimedia Commons, the Library of Congress and other public archives, credited on each item’s page. Maps: U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (via Esri) and Sanborn fire-insurance maps (Library of Congress). History text and census tables: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Places that used to be: USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

From Wikimedia Commons (26), the Library of Congress (1), Wikidata (3), the National Register of Historic Places (18), Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia), the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock), the USGS Geographic Names Information System, Sanborn fire insurance maps (Library of Congress) and old county and town histories (Internet Archive). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.