Command Central for a Government-Owned Town
Richland City Hall
Before Richland became the city we know today, it was a federally controlled town managed by engineers and administrators working for the U.S. government. At the center of it all was City Hall — not just a civic building, but a symbol of military-era governance.
The Administrative Heart of a Government Town
During World War II, Richland was unlike any other American city — it was federally owned and operated, a functioning municipality under the direction of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the Atomic Energy Commission. At the center of this controlled community stood Richland City Hall.
Originally constructed to house federal administrative offices, this building coordinated housing assignments, infrastructure development, and essential services for a city that grew almost overnight. Every neighborhood built, school opened, or utility repaired stemmed from the directives issued here.
After the war, Richland transitioned from federal control to an incorporated city, and City Hall adapted alongside it. Today, the building not only continues to serve as a civic center but also symbolizes the town’s unique origins as a government experiment in urban planning and control.
