Editing Richmond, Illinois (section)

==History==
Carpenter William A. McConnell was Richmond's first settler, arriving in 1837 and erecting the village's first building, a [[log cabin|log structure]]. Eight other settlers arrived in 1838 and growth progressed rapidly after that point.<ref name=nrhp2/> The first school was built on McConnell's farm in 1841 and in 1844 the village was finally platted.<ref name=nrhp2/><ref name=nrhp/> The village was named after [[Richmond, Vermont]], the native home of a first settler.<ref>{{cite book|author=Chicago and North Western Railway Company|title=A History of the Origin of the Place Names Connected with the Chicago & North Western and Chicago, St. Paul, Minneapolis & Omaha Railways|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=OspBAQAAMAAJ&pg=PA118|year=1908|page=118}}</ref> McConnell and Dr. R.R. Stone established a cheese factory in Richmond, and a creamery, other cheese factories, a box factory, a wagon works and a pickle factory followed.<ref name=nrhp2/>

Most of Richmond's original buildings were built from the mid-1840s through the 1860s and consisted of [[Greek Revival]] rural farmhouse and Richmond's commercial district. Houses within the village were built mostly in the Greek Revival style as well with later prominent homes cast in the [[Italianate]] or [[Second Empire (architecture)|Second Empire]] styles.<ref name=nrhp/> The village of Richmond was officially incorporated in 1872.<ref name=nrhp2>Gallagher, Christina J. "[http://gis.hpa.state.il.us/hargis/PDFs/201142.pdf Memorial Hall], ([[PDF]]), National Register of Historic Places Registration Form, April 26, 1993, ''[[Illinois Historic Preservation Agency]]'', accessed May 4, 2008.</ref>

On Christmas Eve 1902 a devastating fire swept through most of Richmond's commercial district destroying 20 buildings.<ref name=nrhp>Drabant, Gail A. "[http://gis.hpa.state.il.us/hargis/PDFs/200982.pdf Lucien Boneparte Covell House]", ([[PDF]]), National Register of Historic Places Registration Form, August 8, 1988, ''[[Illinois Historic Preservation Agency]]'', accessed May 3, 2008.</ref> The fire was a setback for Richmond's economic growth as most of the buildings were either uninsured or [[underinsured]]. Many business owners did not bother to rebuild at all following the fire. Another building spurt did occur in Richmond between 1903 and 1905.<ref name=nrhp/>

Richmond was the site for the Chicago Super and Sprint Weekend event, June 11–12, 2017, part of the Reebok [[Spartan Race]].{{citation needed|date=November 2021}}