Agrippa Cooper was the first settler in Richmond in the mid-1850s. In 1859, surveyors visited the Richmond area and determined it to be a suitable area for living, with abundant water that could be used for farming and milling, and land that was fertile for growing crops.[5] Within a few years log cabins, dugouts, and a log fort had been built. In 1860, a sawmill and a schoolhouse were erected.[6][7] The city was settled mainly by Mormon pioneers, such as Thomas Levi Whittle, John Bair, Stillman Pond, Goudy E. Hogan, and Marriner W. Merrill.[8]
The city was likely named in honor of LDS apostleCharles C. Rich, who had been the Apostle who traveled to the American Falls area of California in 1850 to call the first ten Latter-day Saint missionaries (including Whittle) to serve in Hawaii. [9] Other factors involved in selecting the name may also have been the rich local soil or that Richmond, London was the hometown of some of its English settlers.[7]
In 1860, LDS Church President Brigham Young visited the settlement of Richmond to council and direct the settlement. The Native Americans in the Cache Valley were becoming hostile to many of the Mormon pioneers, and many violent battles had already been fought. Young counseled the settlers to "Move your families and wagons close together, then, if you are disturbed, you are like a hive of bees, and everyone is ready and knows at once what to do."[5] This led the settlers to build a fort named "Fort Richmond".
Holstein Friesian cattle were brought to Richmond in 1904, and thrived so well that the town was recognized as Utah's Holstein center. In 1912, the Richmond Holstein Cow Show was founded. Now called Richmond's "Black and White Days", the show features carnival rides, food vendors, a horse pull, and a parade.[6][12] The town's first two creameries—Cache Valley Dairy and Union Creamery—each produced up to 40,000lb (18,000kg) of milk per day in 1902. The creameries were absorbed by Utah Condensed Milk Company in 1904, and then reorganized as Sego Milk Products in 1920.[6] For many years, the plant was the largest operation west of the Mississippi.
The 1962 Cache Valley earthquake, which occurred east of Richmond in the Bear River Range, destroyed many pioneer buildings in Richmond, including the original home of Marriner W. Merrill, and the two-story LDS brick Stake Tabernacle.
As of the census[3] of 2000, there were 2,051 people, 619 households, and 526 families residing in the city. The population density was 696.1 inhabitants per square mile (268.8/km2). There were 654 housing units at an average density of 222.0 per square mile (85.7/km2). The racial makeup of the city was 97.32% White, 0.20% African American, 0.15% Native American, 0.20% Asian, 1.56% from other races, and 0.59% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2.49% of the population.
There were 619 households, out of which 49.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 73.5% were married couples living together, 8.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 14.9% were non-families. 13.7% of all households were made up of individuals, and 6.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.31 and the average family size was 3.68.
In the city, the population was spread out, with 37.3% under the age of 18, 9.9% from 18 to 24, 25.5% from 25 to 44, 19.2% from 45 to 64, and 8.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 27 years. For every 100 females, there were 98.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 98.5 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $42,138, and the median income for a family was $45,500. Males had a median income of $31,743 versus $21,778 for females. The per capita income for the city was $14,312. About 5.8% of families and 6.7% of the population were below the poverty line, including 6.8% of those under age 18 and 7.7% of those age 65 or over.
Economy
There are many notable businesses located in Richmond.
Casper's Ice Cream was founded in 1925 by Casper W. Merrill who originally made ice-cream with his family dairy milk. Casper's Ice Cream's original ingredients have changed very little throughout the years. There are more than 360,000 ice cream bars sandwiches that are produced daily, which can be found in major national retailers. The brands are FatBoys, Casper's Classics, and the Active D'Lites.[17]
Cherry Peak Ski Resort is one of Utah's newest resorts, starting in the 2014-2015 season. They have rentals and a grill located in their resort. During the summer, people can come and schedule bike rides, hiking, and Frisbee golf. They also have the Summer Concert Series where people can see singers and comedians perform live during the summer. Because this combination of winter and summer activities, Cherry Peak Ski Resort has won multiple awards from the Best Of Northern Utah nominations for live music, extreme adventure, and family attraction.[18][19]
Lower Food's Inc.
Russell J. Lower (pronounced lou-er) started working in the meat industry in 1927 in Smithfield, Utah; the closest city south of Richmond. In 1941, Russell began his meat cutting and carving business in 1941 as Smithfield Abattoir, but later sold the business to another company. Russell's son, R. Larry Lower, purchased the business 1956 to continue his father's legacy. They moved the Lower business to Richmond in 1987 after the death of Russell. Today, Russell's grandson and Larry's son, Alan T. Lower, continues the family business along with his sons Lee and Chad. In just the month of July 2023, Lower's produces about 3.3 million pounds of meat.[20][21]
Pepperidge Farm
Pepperidge Farm opened their Richmond location in 1974. In 2011, the plant was producing over 1 million cases of Goldfish.[22] In August 2023, Pepperidge Farm announced that they would be upgrading their facility, costing about $160 million.[23]
Multiple history articles have been produced about Richmond. The History of Richmond, Utah by Amos W. Bair, 1976; Richmond: A History in Black & White by Marlin W. Stum, 2007; Images of America: Richmond by Cheri Housley, Marie Lundgreen and Kathy Jones, 2011;[25]Richmond's Encyclopedia website by Bryce Holt, launched 2021 with monthly updates.[26] All can be found in the Richmond City Library.
Parks and recreation
Parks and recreational sites include Richmond City Grandstand and Baseball Field, a public horse arena with benches, an outdoor shooting range, and the Richmond Community Building.[27] The city, partnering with the Cache County Planning & Zoning commission, have begun the process of laying out paths and trails across the city and surrounding area.
Education in Richmond is over the Cache School District,[28] with White Pine Elementary[29] School on the north side of Richmond. All 7th and 8th grade students in the north end of Cache School District attend North Cache Middle School, and advance to Sky View High School.
Media
In 1971, Richmond resident Arthur Morin and 11 of his children drove 2,700 miles (4,300km) in a camper to Lehigh Acres, Florida, to compete as finalists in the All American Family competition.[30]
In 2003, part of the film Napoleon Dynamite was filmed in Richmond's Big J's fast-food restaurant.[31]
Cache County is a county located in the Wasatch Front region of Utah. As of the 2020 United States Census, the population was 133,154, with an estimated 140,173 in 2022. Its county seat and largest city is Logan. Cache County is included in Logan metropolitan area.
Juab County is a county in western Utah, United States. As of the 2020 United States Census, the population was 11,786. Its county seat and largest city is Nephi.
Oneida County is a county located in the U.S. state of Idaho. As of the 2020 Census the county had a population of 4,564. The county seat and largest city is Malad City. Most of the county's population lives in Malad City and the surrounding Malad Valley.
Meridian is a city located in Ada County, Idaho, United States. The population was 117,635 at the 2020 census, making it the 2nd most populous city in the county and Idaho after Boise, the state capital. Meridian is considered the state's fastest-growing city and among the fastest-growing cities in the United States.
Amalga is a town in Cache County, Utah, United States. The population was 488 at the 2010 census. It is included in the Logan, Utah-Idaho (partial) Metropolitan Statistical Area.
Hyde Park is a city in north-central Cache County, Utah, United States. The population was 5,234 at the 2020 census. It is included in the Logan, Utah-Idaho Metropolitan Statistical Area.
Logan is a city in Cache County, Utah, United States. The 2020 census recorded the population was 52,778. Logan is the county seat of Cache County and the principal city of the Logan metropolitan area, which includes Cache County and Franklin County, Idaho. The Logan metropolitan area contained 147,908 people as of the 2020 census. Logan is the location of the main campus of Utah State University.
Utah State University is a public land-grant research university with its main campus in Logan, Utah. Founded in 1888 under the Morrill Land-Grant Acts, Utah State is one of two flagship universities in the state of Utah. USU is classified among "R1: Doctoral Universities – Very High Research Activity".
The Bear River Massacre, or the Engagement on the Bear River, or the Battle of Bear River, or Massacre at Boa Ogoi, took place in present-day Franklin County, Idaho, on January 29, 1863. After years of skirmishes and food raids on farms and ranches, the United States Army attacked a Shoshone encampment gathered at the confluence of the Bear River and Battle Creek in what was then southeastern Washington Territory, near the present-day city of Preston. Colonel Patrick Edward Connor led a detachment of California Volunteers as part of the Bear River Expedition against Shoshone tribal chief Bear Hunter. Hundreds of Shoshone men, women, and children were killed near their lodges; the number of Shoshone victims reported by local settlers was higher than that reported by soldiers.
John Whittaker Taylor was a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and was the son of John Taylor, the church's third president. While he was an apostle, Taylor was excommunicated from the LDS Church for opposing the church's abandonment of plural marriage. He was subsequently posthumously re-baptized in 1965.
The Pennsylvania State University Creamery, also known as the Penn State Berkey Creamery or just The Creamery, is a producer and vendor of ice cream, sherbet, and cheese, all made through the Department of Food Science in the College of Agricultural Sciences of the Pennsylvania State University. It is the largest university creamery in the United States, using approximately 4.5 million pounds of milk annually, approximately 70% of which comes from a 210-cow herd at the university's Dairy Production Research Center and the rest local milk suppliers, and selling 750,000 hand-dipped ice cream cones per year. Offering over 100 ice cream flavors made with a butterfat content of 14.1% and ingredients from around the country and the world, the Creamery's ice cream is enjoyed by many students and alumni every day.
Marriner Wood Merrill an American pioneer and religious leader. He was a pioneering settler of the Cache Valley and a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
Blue Bell Creameries is an American food company that manufactures ice cream. It was founded in 1907 in Brenham, Texas. For much of its early history, the company manufactured both ice cream and butter locally. In the mid-20th century, it abandoned butter production and expanded to the entire state of Texas and soon much of the Southern United States. The company's corporate headquarters are located at the "Little Creamery" in Brenham, Texas. Since 1919, it has been in the hands of the Kruse family. As of 2015, Blue Bell was the #2 selling ice cream manufacturer in the United States.
Hershey Creamery Company, also known as Hershey's Ice Cream, is an American creamery that produces ice cream, sorbet, sherbet, frozen yogurt, and other frozen desserts such as smoothies and frozen slab-style ice cream mixers. It was founded by Jacob Hershey and four of his brothers in 1894 and taken over by the Holder family in the 1920s. The company was one of the first to offer consumers pre-packaged ice cream pints.
The Cold Stone Creamery, Inc. is an American international ice cream parlor chain. Headquartered in Scottsdale, Arizona, the company is owned and operated by Kahala Brands. The company's main product is premium ice cream made with approximately 12–14% butterfat, made on location and customized for patrons at time of order. Cold Stone has also expanded its menu with other ice cream-related products, including: ice cream cakes, pies, cookie sandwiches, smoothies, shakes, and iced or blended coffee drinks.
Lake Point is a city on the eastern edge of northern Tooele County, Utah, United States. It is located 17 miles southwest of Salt Lake City International Airport and 11 miles north of Tooele, Utah. At its location on the south shore of the Great Salt Lake, the city is served by Interstate 80 and Utah State Route 36.
Fentons Creamery is a historic ice cream parlor and restaurant located on Piedmont Avenue in Oakland, California, United States. Fentons is the state’s longest continually operating creamery, with a small herd of dairy cows in West Marin.
Casper's Ice Cream is a family owned ice cream company based in Richmond, Utah. The company's most popular product is the FatBoy.
Cherry Peak is a ski area in northern Utah that opened in 2014 and first used for skiing in the 2015–2016 season. It is located in Cherry Canyon, east of Richmond, Utah in the Bear River Mountains. While smaller and less developed than a number of Utah ski resorts, Cherry Peak is close and convenient to residents of nearby Logan, Utah State University, and Cache Valley. It also hosts students from more distant universities.
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