Editing Rio Dell, California (section)

==History==
Rio Dell was founded and named by businessman Lorenzo Painter, who devised the name as a merging of Spanish ''río'' ("river") and English ''dell'' ("small wooded valley").<ref>{{Cite web|title=History of Rio Dell {{!}} City of Rio Dell|url=https://cityofriodell.ca.gov/history-rio-dell|access-date=June 8, 2020|website=cityofriodell.ca.gov}}</ref>

Originally settled on the territories of the [[Wiyot Tribe|Wiyot]], [[Eel River Athapaskan peoples#Nongatl|Nongatl]], and [[Mattole]] tribes, Rio Dell was reportedly first dubbed "Tokemuk" by native inhabitants of the land who were thought to be of multiple regional tribes and who uniquely spoke at least two different regional languages. The native presence was greatly diminished following the [[1860 Wiyot massacre]] on [[Tuluwat Island|Indian Island]] that extended south to the Eel river valley where Rio Dell is located. From there, the area became known as Eagle Prairie and finally as Rio Dell.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Garrison, James R.|url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/967394417|title=Scotia and Rio Dell.|date=2015|publisher=Arcadia Publishing Inc|isbn=978-1-4396-5230-5|pages=7–8|oclc=967394417}}</ref>

The first post office at Rio Dell opened in 1876.<ref name=CGN /> Rio Dell was connected to Scotia by a ferry provided by the lumber mill in Scotia.<ref name=torh>{{cite book|last1=Hawk|first1=Diane|title=Touring the old redwood highway : Humboldt County |date=2004|publisher=Hawk Mountaintop 
 |location=Arcata, Calif.|isbn=978-0-9672162-4-9|page=104}}</ref> After the first bridge was destroyed by a flood in 1905, a ferry carried mill workers from Rio Dell upstream to Scotia, and a second ferry carried mill workers downstream to [[Metropolitan, California|Metropolitan]]<ref name=jjr>{{cite book |last=Rovai |first=Julio J. |title =Rio Dell-(Wildwood) as I saw it in the early twenties |publisher =Julio J. Rovai |date =1979 |location =Santa Rosa, California}}</ref> until a suspension bridge was built to Scotia in 1914.<ref name=torh/> Many Italian immigrants lived in what came to be known as Wildwood, south of Rio Dell proper, and known at the time to outsiders as ''Little Italy''.<ref name=jjr/> This part of town became popular with mill workers seeking [[moonshine]], [[gambling]], and [[prostitution]] unavailable in the [[company town]] of Scotia where they were employed. Men came from as far away as [[Eureka, California|Eureka]] to enjoy these illegal entertainments, or to engage in recreational fighting, the downtown very soon becoming known as ''Wildwood''. Rio Dell's main street still carries the name ''Wildwood Avenue''. In 1928 buildings on both sides of this street were engulfed by a fire started by a moonshine [[still]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://humboldt-dspace.calstate.edu/bitstream/handle/10211.3/131776/Garrison_Jim_Barnum_2013_f.pdf?sequence=3 |title=The Company's Town: An Examination of the Longevity and Legacy of Scotia, California |last=Garrison |first=Jim |publisher=Humboldt State University |access-date=August 21, 2019 }}</ref> The fire endangered the bridge to Scotia and prevented the Scotia Fire Department from crossing the bridge to help extinguish the fire.<ref name=jjr/>

Rio Dell became home to the workforce for one of the largest lumber mills in the world, the [[Pacific Lumber Company]]. It was often the first home of immigrants to the United States and Humboldt County, particularly for the young Italian and Portuguese immigrant workforce of the early 20th century. Rio Dell was incorporated in 1965 as a result of changing demographics, a post-war population expansion and the reluctance of the local Sheriff to provide law enforcement services to what was perceived as a dangerous and remote community. The primary benefit of municipal incorporation being a city's ability to create its own armed police department under local control. The department totaled 14 sworn officers shortly after obtaining city status. Following the city's incorporation in 1965 a series of events over the next two decades led to the economic decline of the community, including the opening of a new freeway bypass and the eventual demise of Pacific Lumber Company (Palco) as a significant employer.{{citation needed|date=December 2022}}

Rio Dell was impacted by the [[2022 Ferndale earthquake]].<ref>{{Cite news |last=Quezada |first=Jose |last2=Moity |first2=Steven |last3=Hancock |first3=Ollie |date=January 1, 2023 |title=California Town Rattled by Earthquake a Second Time |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2023/01/01/us/california-earthquake.html |access-date=January 2, 2023 |issn=0362-4331}}</ref>