Richland Municipal Court

SR 7 and SR 133 meet in Richland.

Like most towns in this area this one was the result of the railroad running through the area. Around 1869, a surveyor laid out a site on both sides of the track which was to become Richland. The town was originally called Lyons Station, however the existence of another town with the same name led the townspeople to change the name to Richland. The Richland Steam and Flouring and Saw Mills was erected in the 1870's and when the the St Louis and San Francisco Railroad gained control of the railroad around 1877, the town became a shipping point between Springfield and St Louis. The economy was mainly based on livestock production and general farming as well as it being due to the town's role as a tie buying center for the railroads and a shipping point for lumber, wheat, corn, dried fruit, hides and furs, poultry and eggs and wild game. In the 1930's two entrepreneurs created Ozark Fisheries just West of town to raise goldfish resulting in an enterprise which is still a flourishing business today. The town's Shady Dell park has covered picnic pavilions, a horseshoe pitching area, an Olympic-size pool, tennis courts, lighted baseball field, sand volleyball court, open-air theater and playgrounds for the children. This park is the site each Summer of the Tri-County Fair with activities such as a carnival, livestock judging, contests for kids, craft exhibits, concerts, a truck and tractor pull, and lots of food including barbeque.

Hon. Rodney Blanchard