Riverdale

History

The area was first settled by Arthur Newton in 1874, and he platted the community the following year. The community received a station along the Detroit, Lansing and Northern Railroad, which later became part of the Pere Marquette Railway. Nelson also became the first postmaster when a post office opened on March 10, 1876. He wanted the post office to be named Riverside, as it was located along the Pine River. However, there was already another Riverside post office in operation in Berrien County. His post office and community would instead be named Riverdale. The post office has remained in continuous operation and is located at 6728 North Lumberjack Road in the center of the community. In 1895, Charles Green opened a saloon and restaurant in Riverdale. In 1912, he also added a grocery store and ice cream parlor to his business, but it burned down in 1917. On the same concrete slab of his former business, he rebuilt and established the Riverdale Tavern that same year. During the Prohibition Era, the building again transformed back to a grocery store and ice cream parlor. Green died in 1962, and the business transitioned through many owners. In 2017, the Riverdale Tavern celebrated its centennial anniversary. For the 2020 census, Riverdale was included as a newly-listed census-designated place. Riverdale continues to remain an unincorporated community with no legal autonomy of its own.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the CDP of Riverdale has a total area of , of which is land and (1.43%) is water. Other nearby unincorporated communities include Elm Hall just to the south, Vestaburg to the west, and Elwell to the east. The cities of Alma and St. Louis are located further east. The Riverdale post office uses the 48877 ZIP Code. The post office serves the western portion of Seville Township, as well the northwestern portion of Sumner Township. In Montcalm County, the post office serves the eastern portions of Richland Township and Ferris Township, as well as a small portion of the southeast corner of Fremont Township in Isabella County. The Fred Meijer Heartland Trail, which travels from Alma to Greenville, has a trailhead in Riverdale.

Race & ethnicity

Most-observed species

• Mourning Dove

  Zenaida macroura (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  1,928
• American Crow

  Corvus brachyrhynchos C.L.Brehm, 1822 · Aves
  1,911
• American Robin

  Turdus migratorius Linnaeus, 1766 · Aves
  1,777
• Northern Cardinal

  Cardinalis cardinalis (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  1,627
• Blue Jay

  Cyanocitta cristata (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  1,610
• Red-winged Blackbird

  Agelaius phoeniceus (Linnaeus, 1766) · Aves
  1,590
• Canada Goose (canadensis Group)

  Branta canadensis (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  1,503
• Black-capped Chickadee

  Poecile atricapillus (Linnaeus, 1766) · Aves
  1,441

Largest nearby schools

• Alma Senior High School
  High · ALMA · 558 students · 15.1:1 ratio
• Donald L Pavlik Middle School
  Middle · ALMA · 449 students · 18.7:1 ratio
• Luce Road Elementary School
  Elementary · ALMA · 304 students · 14.5:1 ratio
• Pine Avenue Elementary School
  Elementary · ALMA · 294 students · 17.3:1 ratio
• Hillcrest Elementary School
  Elementary · ALMA · 268 students · 14.9:1 ratio