The town would be named after Phillip Ritz, who had settled nearby two years earlier.

[4] By December 1880, Ritzville's town-site had been platted by John W. Sprague on behalf of his company, The Northern Pacific Railway.

The Northern Pacific grade was under construction in the vicinity and McKay's home was used as a makeshift hotel for the workers and associated transients.

In the summer of 1881, McKay erected the first store and the railroad built a depot nearby, which also served as a hotel, theater and meeting hall.

At that time the fledgeling village had a population of around 50 and the school consisted of a lean-to against a house.

As the 1880s wore on, the town was beginning to realize its position as a major wheat shipping point in the Big Bend Country and it continued to grow.

By 1887, Ritzville had three general merchandise stores, one drug store, one saloon, two blacksmith shops, two lumber yards, two livery stables, one harness shop, two hotels and a large, two-story wooden schoolhouse with an attendance of 100.

[5] On June 6, 1888, a fire caused by a defective flue wiped out nearly all of the business section of town.

[5] Ritzville had no fire department at the time and its citizens were unable to combat the flames effectively.

Following the rebuilding from the fire, Ritzville was incorporated as a town in 1888 and was officially re-incorporated as a city on July 17, 1890 after Washington became a state.

After the panic of 1893 had subsided in 1898, Ritzville was experiencing another boom, with demand for property rising and scores of buildings being built.

The town finally received a volunteer fire department in 1901, with equipment funded by the citizens.

Also in 1901, Ritzville received the title of the greatest wheat shipping point in the world.

By the time of The Great Depression, growth had slowed and Ritzville settled in as a small town.

The town's arrested development from then on preserved it and formed the core of the designated Ritzville Historic District in 1990.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 1.70 square miles (4.40 km2), all of it land.