More historic than 18% of U.S. towns · #84 of 119 in Utah. What drives it
Most of Riverdale was built recently: 3% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1986. Below: maps from 1955 on and the census since 1880.
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1868.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Riverdale’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Riverdale is more historic than 18% of U.S. towns, #84 of 119 in Utah. Its age holds the grade up; its National Register listings pull it down.
C−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Riverdale’s overall grade.
Utah towns list more on the Register than most of the country (a typical Utah town has 3.0 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Riverdale’s 0.0 sits below most of its state (18% of Utah towns have fewer) while its 0 listings outnumber those of 23% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from D to C−. The pre-1940 share (±2.8 points) is firm at this size. Two sources give 1850.
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 Riverdale’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Riverdale had its own post office from 1868 to 1903.
Riverdale
1868–1903
18601940today
Hamlets and corners on the map
Apple ParkBartonBarton-ThompsonCallCarters FarmCottonwood Estates Number OneDiamond HillsFarrFarr Number TwoGraig DaleHighland ViewKammeyer AdditionOlsenRiver ValleyRiver Valley EstatesSherwood MeadowsSherwood ParkSouthcrestTibbittsTurf parkValley SideWen Dale Park
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
Help out
Start Riverdale’s collection
The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Riverdale’s history is told.
Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Once called "Stringtown" due to the early homes being strung along a single road and the Weber River, Riverdale was also known as "Jack Thompson's Settlement" and "Union" before the name of Riverdale was given to the town.
The first settlers in the community were James Graham, his sons George and Robert, and other members of the Graham family. They farmed in the area as early as 1850. Elisha Lane located nearby, as did William Farley, and Rufus Allen. Other early settlers of Riverdale included Adam Fife, Alexander Patterson, Warren Gould Child Sr, Thomas Slater, Richard Woolsey, John Child, John C. Thompson, William Stimpson, Myron Barber Child, Richard Dye, and George Ritter.
In 1850, according to Wikidata. Riverdale’s post office opened in 1868, and the census of 1880 counted 272 people here.
How does Riverdale rank for history?
Riverdale is more historic than 18% of U.S. towns, #84 of 119 in Utah. 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.
How old are the homes in Riverdale?
3% of Riverdale’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±2.8 points), against a typical 2.8% for an Utah town; the median home was built in 1986.
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 (3), Wikipedia, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia), the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock) and the USGS Geographic Names Information System. Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.
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