HISTORY

Riddle is an incorporated municipality of some 1,210 people at the north end of Cow Creek, in a small central valley of Douglas County, twenty-three miles south of Roseburg, the County seat. The scenic valley, approximately six miles in length by one and one-half miles in width, is bordered on the east by the South Umpqua River and on the north, south and west by the foothills of the Coast Range. First settled in the early 1850’s, then the town was named for William H. Riddle, who came to Oregon from Springfield, Illinois, in 1851, and settled near the present site of the City. By the end of 1852, nearly all the fertile agricultural lands were claimed.

It was not until 1882, when the Oregon and California Railroad reached the valley that a settlement began to develop. J.B. and A. Riddle donated land in the heart of the valley for a town site. The little town which instantly sprung up was named Riddle (often called Riddleburg), and for several months remained the southern operating terminus for the railroad.

Incorporated in 1893, Riddle is connected to major service and market areas by Interstate 5, approximately three miles east of the City and by the Siskiyou mainline of the Southern Pacific Railroad. These are the major north-south transportation routes for Western Oregon and Douglas County.

WEATHER

Riddle has a temperate climate with approximately 30 inches annual rainfall and a mean temperature of 54 degrees F. Precipitation comes mainly in the winter months with summer months each averaging less than an inch.

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