Listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1979.
“Ray County Courthouse is a historic courthouse located at Richmond, Ray County, Missouri. It was built in 1914, and is a three-story, Classical Revival style Bedford limestone building.”
Wikipedia article Ray County Courthouse, CC BY-SA 4.0.
One of 6 National Register listings published here for Ray County · listed in 1979 · category: Building.
Sources: the Wikipedia article · the case file at the National Archives · the National Register database, National Park Service
An account from the chapter on Richmond township. The inset identifies its exact source book and publication year.
On June 1, A. D. 1878, the city of Richmond was visited by one of the most violent and destructive cyclones that ever passed over this section of the country. Nearly every thing in its pathway was utterly demolished. Huge trees were torn up by the roots, buildings swept away, and human and animal life destroyed.
The chapter on Richmond Township in History of Ray County, Mo., published 1881 names Richmond. This is what it says, exactly as the scans read.
On the 20th and 21st of August following, the election was duly held, and resulted in one hundred and eight votes being cast for the proposition and fifty-five against it; and in due course of time, as already fully stated, the county seat was removed, and public buildings erected, etc. Hence, Richmond owes its existence to the fact of the land on which the original town is located having been selected first by commisioners, and then by a majority of the qualified voters of the county as a site for the permanent seat of justice of the county of Ray.
Passage source: History of Ray County, Mo., published 1881.
Richmond was surveyed and laid out into blocks, lots, streets and alleys by Thomas N. Aubry, Esq., under the direction of William S. Miller, commissioner of the seat of justice, between the 24th of September and the 15th of October, A. D. 1827.
Passage source: History of Ray County, Mo., published 1881.
Machine-read from a century-old scan, so expect the errors a machine makes: misspelled names, dropped words, stray characters.
Read the whole chapter on Richmond Township - 31,040 words on its settlement, mills, schools and churches.
Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 17 workings within 5 miles of Ray County Courthouse: 16 past producers, 1 producer. 1 still produces. What was taken out: Stone, Crushed/Broken. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a quarry counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.
| Where | Site | Commodity | Status | Recorded |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Belt Quarry | Stone, Crushed/Broken | Past Producer | ||
| Case Quarry | Stone, Crushed/Broken | Past Producer | ||
| Clevanger Quarry | Stone, Crushed/Broken | Past Producer | ||
| Ee Quarry | Stone, Crushed/Broken | Producer | ||
| Garner Qsuarry | Stone, Crushed/Broken | Past Producer | ||
| Unknown Ls | Stone, Crushed/Broken | Past Producer | ||
| Unknown Ls | Stone, Crushed/Broken | Past Producer | ||
| Unknown Ls | Stone, Crushed/Broken | Past Producer | ||
| Unknown Ls | Stone, Crushed/Broken | Past Producer | ||
| Unknown Ls | Stone, Crushed/Broken | Past Producer |
Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Richmond, the town this property stands in, in 62 storm reports between 1993 and 2025: 29 thunderstorm wind, 22 hail, 7 flash flood, 2 lightning. No death or injury is recorded in these reports. Each account below is quoted exactly as the forecast office filed it, from the NOAA Storm Events Database, and each date opens the federal record of that event.
| When | Event | Place named | Harm | What the report says |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| August 1993 | Thunderstorm Wind | Richmond | $500,000 | A local newspaper reported downed trees and power lines. Half of the bleacher seats at the high school football field were ripped out of place and left twisted on the field. A 75-foot-hole was also torn in the ceiling of a Wal-Mart store. |
| September 2000 | Thunderstorm Wind | Richmond | $200,000 | Thunderstorm winds tore off a 60-by-100 foot section of the roof at Richmond High School. |
| October 1998 | Flash Flood | Richmond | $100,000 | no account filed |
| April 1999 | Thunderstorm Wind | Richmond | $20,000 | Barn blown down |
| April 2007 | Thunderstorm Wind | Richmond | $10,000 | Barn roof and parts of the barns sides blown about 150 yards. Pieces of the barn hit and damaged a house nearby. |
| May 1997 | Lightning | Richmond | $10,000 | Lightning struck a power line which carries a surge of electricity into a a Richmond home during a thunderstorm. The electrical surge sparked a fire which resulted in about 10,000 dollars in damage to the home. No one was injured in the fire. |
| August 2000 | Thunderstorm Wind | Richmond | $5,000 | Numerous trees were downed in Richmond. At least one tree fell on a car. |
| March 2025 | Thunderstorm Wind | Richmond | - | Downed tree at a residence in Richmond. |
| July 2025 | Thunderstorm Wind | Richmond | - | Downed tree limbs on the road in Richmond. Power was reported to be out in town. |
| July 2025 | Thunderstorm Wind | Richmond | - | Downed wires near Route T near Richmond. |
| May 2024 | Thunderstorm Wind | Richmond | - | Social media report and photos of trees down on St. Cloud Road. |
| May 2024 | Thunderstorm Wind | Richmond | - | Downed wires and power outages near Cunningham Street. |
| May 2024 | Thunderstorm Wind | Richmond | - | Downed wires and power outages near Daugherty Road. |
| May 2024 | Thunderstorm Wind | Richmond | - | Downed wires and power outages near Valley View Drive. |
| June 2023 | Hail | Richmond | - | Quarter sized hail was reported in central Richmond. |
| June 2023 | Hail | Richmond | - | Golf ball sized hail was reported at the Shirkey Golf Course on the southeast side of Richmond. |
| September 2021 | Thunderstorm Wind | Richmond | - | This report came from MPing. Very minor damage occurred at this location. |
| June 2020 | Thunderstorm Wind | Richmond | - | Richmond police reported damage to a shed with debris spread across parts of South Street near Highway 13. |
| July 2017 | Thunderstorm Wind | Richmond | - | There was some damage to trees of unknown size and condition in Richmond. |
| June 2017 | Thunderstorm Wind | Richmond | - | A large tree of unknown size and condition was down near Richmond. |
| March 2017 | Thunderstorm Wind | Richmond | - | A swath of wind around 80 to 90 mph affected areas in and around Richmond. A center point irrigation system was toppled over southwest of the city. Inside Richmond several trees were snapped as well as power poles. Several outbuildings were destroyed and several residences in the city sustained slightly more than cosmetic damage. The narrow and localized swath was consistent with a possible mesovortex, but the debris strewn generally unidirectional down stream from the source of the damage indicated straight line winds. |
| May 2016 | Hail | Richmond | - | This report was gathered via social media. |
| June 2015 | Thunderstorm Wind | Richmond | - | Power lines were blown down in the city of Richmond. |
| June 2015 | Flash Flood | Richmond | - | Flash flooding was ongoing between Richmond and the Crooked River. |
| October 2014 | Flash Flood | Richmond | - | Manhole covers were being lifted by the force of the water coming up from the storm drains. |
| August 2011 | Thunderstorm Wind | Richmond | - | Thunderstorm wind gusts were estimated up to 60 mph. Tree limbs up to 3 inches in diameter were snapped off. |
| July 2009 | Thunderstorm Wind | Richmond | - | Numerous trees were reported down. |
| July 2008 | Heavy Rain | Richmond | - | Five inches of rain was measured in the past 24 hours. |
| July 2008 | Flash Flood | Richmond | - | Water was reported over the road at the intersection of Highway 10 and Business 10. |
| December 2008 | Thunderstorm Wind | Richmond | - | Wind gusts caused a mailbox pole to bend. |
| March 2008 | Flood | Richmond | - | The Crooked River near Richmond crested at 20.98 feet, or 0.98 feet above flood stage. |
| May 2007 | Flash Flood | Richmond | - | Numerous reports of county roads flooded due to the heavy rains. Lexington Street near Wellington closed. |
| June 2004 | Thunderstorm Wind | Richmond | - | Tree limbs up to 5 inches in diameter reported down. |
| August 2004 | Flash Flood | Richmond | - | Water covering city streets in Richmond. |
| August 2000 | Thunderstorm Wind | Richmond | - | An amateur radio operator reported 70 mph wind gusts. |
| August 2000 | Thunderstorm Wind | Richmond | - | Large tree limbs and power lines were downed. |
| June 1998 | Lightning | Richmond | - | Lightning during a thunderstorm knocked out the power to the City of Richmond's wells. The Mayor of Richmond was forced to temporarily order the closing of laundromats and car washes until the 60-horsepower motor and water pressure were restored. |
| June 1998 | Thunderstorm Wind | Richmond | - | The Ray County Sheriff's Office reported 2 to 3 inch tree limbs blown down as a result of thunderstorm winds. |
| June 1998 | Thunderstorm Wind | Richmond | - | Thunderstorm winds blew down 4 inch diameter tree limbs in Richmond. |
| July 1995 | Thunderstorm Wind | Richmond | - | Severe thunderstorm winds were reported to gust to 60 mph three miles south of Richmond. |
| April 2016 | Hail | Richmond | - | no account filed |
| April 2015 | Hail | Richmond | - | no account filed |
| May 2014 | Hail | Richmond | - | no account filed |
| April 2011 | Hail | Richmond | - | no account filed |
| June 2009 | Hail | Richmond | - | no account filed |
| April 2008 | Hail | Richmond | - | no account filed |
| June 2008 | Hail | Richmond | - | no account filed |
| June 2008 | Hail | Richmond | - | no account filed |
| June 2007 | Hail | Richmond | - | no account filed |
| February 2007 | Hail | Richmond | - | no account filed |
| March 2006 | Hail | Richmond | - | no account filed |
| June 2006 | Hail | Richmond | - | no account filed |
| February 2003 | Hail | Richmond | - | no account filed |
| May 2003 | Thunderstorm Wind | Richmond | - | no account filed |
| May 2003 | Hail | Richmond | - | no account filed |
| May 2003 | Hail | Richmond | - | no account filed |
| June 2001 | Thunderstorm Wind | Richmond | - | no account filed |
| August 2001 | Hail | Richmond | - | no account filed |
| August 2000 | Hail | Richmond | - | no account filed |
| July 1996 | Flash Flood | Richmond | - | no account filed |
No historic map-sheet match is published for this property yet. That does not mean no map exists. This record needs a coordinate-quality review before it can be joined to a sheet boundary. Browse the county's mapped places while that work is pending.
Other National Register properties close enough to walk or drive between, ordered by distance from this one. Both positions come from the same geocoding pass that matched these properties to their map sheets.
| Photograph | Property | Distance | Listed |
|---|---|---|---|
 | Dougherty Auditorium | 0.1 miles | 1982 |
 | Watkins House | 0.2 miles | 1983 |
 | Ray County Poor Farm | 0.8 miles | 1979 |
 | New Hope Primitive Baptist Church | 4.1 miles | 1980 |
| National Archives record | The nomination case file for reference 79001393 in Record Group 79. |
| Wikipedia article | Community-written account of this property, licensed CC BY-SA. |
| Ray County | All 6 listed properties in this county. |
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