The Richmond Community Building, also known as the Community Building, is a public building owned by Richmond City, built in 1937. The building was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1986 for its significance in being built under U.S. President Roosevelt's New Deal program and associated with events that have made a significant contribution to the broader patterns of our history.
The Richmond Community Building was constructed in 1937 by the city of Richmond as part of United States President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s New Deal program. President Franklin D. Roosevelt created the Federal Emergency Relief Act during the Great Depression to provide labor for those who lost their jobs. This building was part of that project for the city of Richmond.
The building's purpose in its early years was to be used by the citizens of Richmond as a community building and theater. Once you entered the building, after visiting the ticket booth to your left, you were welcomed to a furnished building. Directly ahead was a ballroom with a kitchen attached. To your left was a hall that led to the theater/stage. On your right were the dressing rooms.
After some years, it was later transitioned to a city office building, with the east wing transformed into the City Council hall and city post office, and the west wing housing former Mayor Dr. J. Morris Godfrey's Dentistry. In 1960, a new post office was constructed, and the west wing was reorganized for City Council meetings.
In 2002, a Freedom Is Not Free veterans monument was added outside the building's east side. In 2018, the old Park Elementary building was purchased, the town hall aspect moved, and the Richmond Committee Building was used as originally intended. Between 2021-2024, Bear River Head Start used the building as a preschool with a playground located at the rear of the Richmond Library.
Construction of the Community Building, 1937.
Community Building, 1986
National Register of Historic Places
Community Building, 2010
Community Building, 2024
United States Department of the Interior. National Register of Historic Places (1986). National Register of Historic Places Registration Form: Richmond Community Building. National Archive Catalog. https://catalog.archives.gov/id/71999270