Ridgefield, Washington

Ridgefield is a city in northern Clark County, Washington, United States. The population was 10,319 at the 2020 census, and was estimated at 15,359 in 2024. Cathlapotle participated in the fur trade since 1792, when villagers embarked on canoes to meet the Vancouver Expedition. The area has important ties to the Lewis and Clark Expedition of 1804–1806, which visited the town and described its layout in journals. By then, it was a settlement of 700–800 people, with at least 14 substantial plank houses. Malaria epidemics killed many of its residents during the 1800s, and most people left the village in the early 1830s. Some surviving Chinookan, Cowlitz and Klickitat people used the village until the 1850s, when white settlers began to establish themselves nearby. Use of the village ended when the U.S. forced local tribes to move onto reservations.

James Carty, an Irish immigrant, built a log cabin at Cathlapotle in 1839 and lived with the remaining residents of the town for the next ten years. Three other men settled on a Lake River island nearby, which is now called Bachelor Island after them. In 1850, the U.S. Congress passed the Donation Land Claim Act, and over the next few years white settlers began to file land claims near Cathlapotle. Carty began a ferry over Lake River in 1851, and Arthur Quigley and Frederick Shobert created mud landings for passing steamboats to stop at the town, which became known as Shobert's Landing. This name is preserved in the current name of Union Ridge Elementary School. A school, more industry, and an inter-town telephone line were added during the 1890s. A near-unanimous petition by town residents succeeded in closing the town's only saloon soon after it opened around 1900, and the next attempt to open a saloon there failed as well. In 1903, after years of delay, a railroad from Kalama to Vancouver was built through Ridgefield. Ridgefield voted to incorporate itself as a city in 1909, and also gained its first newspaper, the Ridgefield Reflector, that year.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , of which is land and (0.98%) is water.

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|footnote=U.S. Decennial Census 2020 Census There were 4,722 housing units at an average density of .

The top five reported languages (people were allowed to report up to two languages, thus the figures will generally add to more than 100%) were English (88.9%), Spanish (5.5%), Indo-European (1.8%), Asian and Pacific Islander (3.6%), and Other (0.2%).

{| class="wikitable sortable" style="font-size: 95%;"

|+<big>Ridgefield, Washington – racial and ethnic composition</big>

! Race / ethnicity (NH = non-Hispanic)

! Pop. 1980 !! Pop. 1990 !! Pop. 2000 !! Pop. 2010 !!

| White alone (NH)

| 1,005 (94.63%) || 1,245 (95.99%) || 2,022 (94.18%) || 4,243 (89.08%) || style='background: #ffffe6; |8,169 (79.16%)

| Black or African American alone (NH)

| 1 (0.09%) || 5 (0.39%) || 6 (0.28%) || 40 (0.84%) || style='background: #ffffe6; |100 (0.97%)

| Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH)

| — || 13 (1.00%) || 21 (0.98%) || 31 (0.65%) || style='background: #ffffe6; |63 (0.61%)

| Asian alone (NH)

| — || 7 (0.54%) || 14 (0.65%) || 91 (1.91%) || style='background: #ffffe6; |350 (3.39%)

| Pacific Islander alone (NH)

| — || — || 1 (0.05%) || 6 (0.13%) || style='background: #ffffe6; |33 (0.32%)

| Other race alone (NH)

| 23 (2.17%) || 0 (0.00%) || 1 (0.05%) || 1 (0.02%) || style='background: #ffffe6; |72 (0.70%)

| Mixed race or multiracial (NH)

| — || — || 44 (2.05%) || 106 (2.23%) || style='background: #ffffe6; |692 (6.71%)

| Hispanic or Latino (any race)

| 33 (3.11%) || 27 (2.08%) || 38 (1.77%) || 245 (5.14%) || style='background: #ffffe6; |840 (8.14%)

| Total

| 1,062 (100.00%) || 1,297 (100.00%) || 2,147 (100.00%) || 4,763 (100.00%) || style='background: #ffffe6; |10,319 (100.00%)

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, there were 10,319 people, 3,432 households, and 2,784 families residing in the city. The population density was . There were 3,687 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 81.50% White, 1.05% African American, 0.68% Native American, 3.48% Asian, 0.32% Pacific Islander, 2.70% from some other races and 10.27% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino people of any race were 8.14% of the population.

The median age was 35.6 years. 29.6% of residents were under the age of 18 and 11.4% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 97.6 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 95.4 males age 18 and over.

98.9% of residents lived in urban areas, while 1.1% lived in rural areas.

Of those households, 45.7% had children under the age of 18 living in them. 67.1% were married-couple households, 10.4% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 15.8% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 13.1% of all households were made up of individuals and 4.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.

There were 3,687 housing units, of which 6.9% were vacant. The homeowner vacancy rate was 2.5% and the rental vacancy rate was 12.5%.

2010 census

As of the 2010 census, there were 4,763 people, 1,591 households, and 1,258 families residing in the city. The population density was . There were 1,695 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 92.42% White, 0.88% African American, 0.82% Native American, 1.97% Asian, 0.13% Pacific Islander, 0.94% from some other races and 2.83% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino people of any race were 5.14% of the population.

There were 1,591 households, 48.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 62.0% were married couples living together, 11.6% had a female householder with no husband present, 5.5% had a male householder with no wife present, and 20.9% were non-families. 16.2% of households were one person and 6.1% were one person aged 65 or older. The average household size was 2.99 and the average family size was 3.34.

The median age was 32.4 years. 33.5% of residents were under the age of 18; 6.2% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 29.7% were from 25 to 44; 22.9% were from 45 to 64; and 7.7% were 65 or older. The gender makeup of the city was 49.9% male and 50.1% female.

Economy

Rental and storage company U-Haul was founded in Ridgefield in the summer of 1945.

On August 29, 2024, Ridgefield became the location of the 34th Costco retail in Washington.

On August 20, 2025, Ridgefield became the location of the first In-N-Out Burger restaurant in Washington.

Government

Ridgefield has a council–manager form of government, with a city manager who is appointed by a city council with seven elected members. The city council also selects a mayor from among themselves. The current city manager is Steve Stuart, a former county commissioner who was hired in 2014. In January 2025, Matt Cole was appointed Mayor. He has served as a city council member since 2022. Judy Chipman was appointed Mayor Pro Tem also in January 2025. She has served as a city council member since 2021.

4,367 students enrolled at Ridgefield School District No. 122 in the school year of 2025-26.

Ridgefield, Washington

Geography

2020 census

2010 census

Economy

Government

Notable people

References

External links