First known as West Pulteney after Sir William Pulteney of Bath, England, the area was later renamed in honor of Riga, Latvia, on April 8, 1808, by an early landowner from Berkshire, Massachusetts. Early pioneers included Richard, Elihu, and Samuel Church, who gave their name to Churchville Village. It was incorporated in 1867, and some of the wilderness they cleared and loved and conquered became part of Churchville Park in 1928.