Ridgeville, Indiana
town in Indiana, United States
Ridgeville is a town in Franklin Township, Randolph County, Indiana, United States, along the Mississinewa River. The population was 688 at the 2020 census.
History
A post office called Ridgeville has been in operation since 1851. The town was named for its lofty elevation. Joab Ward, an old Settler to Ridgeville since 1819, originally laid out the village of Ridgeville, Randolph County, Indiana in 1854.
Geography
According to the 2010 census, Ridgeville has a total area of 0.55 square miles (1.42 km2), all land.
Demographics
2010 census
As of the census of 2010, there were 803 people, 323 households, and 219 families living in the town. The population density was 1,433.9 inhabitants per square mile (553.6/km2). There were 371 housing units at an average density of 662.5 per square mile (255.8/km2). The racial makeup of the town was 97.4% White, 0.4% Native American, 0.4% Asian, 0.2% from other races, and 1.6% from two or more races.
Begin with the source’s own compact description: “Ridgeville, Indiana” is town in Indiana, United States. The dossier treats that line as a proposition to test through Ridgeville, Indiana and town, not as a finished interpretation.
Why this record matters
The phrase “town in Indiana, United States” supplies a clear boundary for inquiry. It also exposes the unanswered questions: who defined that boundary, when it became stable and which sources sit outside it.
The strongest evidence will usually combine a dated visual record with documents produced by the authority responsible for the place. The source revision retrieved here is dated Apr 7, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q2805012. VIAF identifies the subject as 135003823. The Library of Congress control number is n91008850. Authority coordinates are 40.291, -85.029. 1 of 3 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 2020, 1851, 1819 and 1854.
Architectural summaries often privilege surviving fabric and can understate demolished phases, contested use or displaced communities. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Treat names, boundaries and functions as historically changeable. Maps, plans, inventories and administrative records can clarify what the place meant at different dates.
- Historic place names
- Jurisdictional context
- Routes into maps and plans
Contemporary maps, plans, listed-building records, estate papers and the responsible local or national archive.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “Ridgeville, Indiana”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow Ridgeville, Indiana primary sources, Ridgeville, Indiana archive and Ridgeville research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Ridgeville, Indiana”?
- Which authority defined the place, boundary or structure at the relevant date?
- What physical evidence or contemporary plan supports the description?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “Ridgeville, Indiana” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.