Ritzville, Washington Ritzville, Washington Gritman Building, downtown Ritzville Gritman Building, downtown Ritzville Location of Ritzville, Washington Location of Ritzville, Washington Website City of Ritzville Ritzville is a town/city in Adams County, Washington, United States.
It is the governmental center of county of Adams County. The town/city is part of the Othello, WA Micropolitan Area, which consists all of Adams County, and is part of the larger Moses Lake-Othello, WA Combined Statistical Area.
The first settler in what would turn into Ritzville was William Mc - Kay in 1880.
The town would be titled after Philip Ritz, who had settled in the region two years earlier. By December 1880, Ritzville's town-site had been platted by John W.
The first theological services were held in Adams County in Ritzville in April 1882 at the Mc - Kay Home and the First Congregational Church was soon organized, a church would be assembled in 1885.
By 1887, Ritzville had three general merchandise stores, one drug store, one saloon, two blacksmith shops, two lumber yards, two livery stables, one harness shop, two hotels and a large, two-story wooden schoolhouse with an attendance of 100. On June 6, 1888, a fire caused by a defective flue wiped out almost all of the company section of town. Ritzville had no fire department at the time and its people were unable to combat the flames effectively.
It still stands and is presently part of the Ritzville Historic District.
Hauling Wheat to Mill, Ritzville c.
Wheat remains the key to Ritzville's economy.
Following the stone from the fire, Ritzville was incorporated as a town in 1888 and was officially re-incorporated as a town/city on July 17, 1890 after Washington became a state.
After the panic of 1893 had subsided in 1898, Ritzville was experiencing another boom, with demand for property rising and scores of buildings being built.
Also in 1901, Ritzville received the title of the greatest wheat shipping point in the world.
Between August of that year and August 1902, roughly 1,967,725 bushels of wheat were received in Ritzville warehouses for shipment and 1,990 rail cars of wheat and flour were billed out.
On January 17, 1902, Ritzville was electrified for the first time, run by a Steam powered Dynamo.
The town/city received a Carnegie Library in 1907, the only one in Adams County.
By the time of The Great Depression, expansion had slowed and Ritzville settled in as a small town.
The town's arrested evolution from then on helped contribute to its charm, helping form The Ritzville Historic District in 1990.
Much of the history of Ritzville and Adams County is visually documented in the A.M.
This archive of images, illustrating everyday life in easterly Washington state, was originally maintained by the Adams County Rural Library District No.
2 (formerly Ritzville Public Library), and now is kept in digital form in the Washington State Digital Archives. Aerial view of Ritzville, 2013 Ritzville is roughly 53 miles (85 km) southwest of Spokane on Interstate 90 and U.S.
According to the United States Enumeration Bureau, the town/city has a total region of 1.70 square miles (4.40 km2), all of it land. There were 751 homeholds of which 23.0% had kids under the age of 18 residing with them, 46.1% were married couples residing together, 8.7% had a female homeholder with no husband present, 4.4% had a male homeholder with no wife present, and 40.9% were non-families.
20.6% of inhabitants were under the age of 18; 6.4% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 19.2% were from 25 to 44; 30.5% were from 45 to 64; and 23.3% were 65 years of age or older.
There were 777 homeholds out of which 24.1% had kids under the age of 18 residing with them, 48.5% were married couples residing together, 8.9% had a female homeholder with no husband present, and 39.4% were non-families.
In the city, the age distribution of the populace shows 21.7% under the age of 18, 5.1% from 18 to 24, 21.8% from 25 to 44, 26.3% from 45 to 64, and 25.1% who were 65 years of age or older.
About 8.4% of families and 14.3% of the populace were below the poverty line, including 20.1% of those under age 18 and 8.6% of those age 65 or over.
Ritzville experiences a semi-arid climate (Koppen BSk).
Climate data for Ritzville, Washington 360 panorama from the corner of Washington and Main in the heart of the Ritzville Historic District.
Five individual structures in Ritzville are on the National Register of Historic Places: The Burroughs (Dr.
Frank R.) House on Main Street, the Northern Pacific Railroad Depot, the Greene (Nelson H.) House on South Adams Street, the Ritzville Carnegie Library on West Main Street, and the Ritzville High School (also known as Old Ritzville High School) on Seventh Avenue.
The Burroughs House and the National Pacific Depot have both been ceded to the town/city and maintained as exhibitions by volunteers. The Ritzville Historic District, bounded approximately by Broadway, Division Street, Railroad Avenue, and Washington Street is also listed on the register. Ritzville is presently home to the biggest annual rodeo in easterly Washington. Ritzville Carnegie Library Seattle Grunge band Mudhoney recorded a song titled after Ritzville on their 1992 album, Piece of Cake.
Chistopher Bingham of the Pagan/Rock band Gaia Consort has recorded two songs, Ritzville and South of Ritzville, on his 1995 solo album, Angel and the Hanged Man.
An Illustrated History of The Big Bend Country, Embracing Lincoln, Douglas, Adams and Franklin Counties.
"Annual Estimates of the Resident Population for Incorporated Places: April 1, 2010 to July 1, 2015".
United States Enumeration Bureau.
"Weatherbase: Weather for Ritzville, Washington, United States of America".
"RITZVILLE 1 SSE, WASHINGTON (457059)".
"National Register of Historic Places: Washington, Adams County".
Washington State Department of Archaeology and Historic Preservation.
Kirk, Ruth and Carmela Alexander (1990, amended 1995) Exploring Washington's Past: a road guide to history (Revised Edition), University of Washington Press, Seattle.
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Ritzville, Washington.
City of Ritzville website Ritzville Heritage.
Local history collections from the Ritzville Public Library and Adams County Historical Society.
Ritzville Public Library.
History of Ritzville at History - Link List of Known Ritzville Speed Traps Ritzville Fire Department Top Hat Motel in Ritzville, WA Municipalities and communities of Adams County, Washington, United States
Categories:
Cities in Washington (state)Cities in Adams County, Washington - County seats in Washington (state)
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