Riverton is an unincorporated community

Unincorporated area

In law, an unincorporated area is a region of land that is not a part of any municipality.To "incorporate" in this context means to form a municipal corporation, a city, town, or village with its own government. An unincorporated community is usually not subject to or taxed by a municipal government...

 in Coos County

Coos County, Oregon

-National protected areas:*Bandon Marsh National Wildlife Refuge*Oregon Islands National Wildlife Refuge *Siskiyou National Forest *Siuslaw National Forest - Incorporated cities:- Unincorporated communities and CDPs:-See also:...

, Oregon

Oregon

Oregon is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is located on the Pacific coast, with Washington to the north, California to the south, Nevada on the southeast and Idaho to the east. The Columbia and Snake rivers delineate much of Oregon's northern and eastern...

, United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

, on Oregon Route 42S, about 12 miles up the Coquille River

Coquille River

The Coquille River is a stream long, in southwestern Oregon in the United States. It drains a mountainous area of of the Southern Oregon Coast Range into the Pacific Ocean. Its watershed is located between that of the Coos River to the north and the Rogue River to the south.-Geography:The river,...

 from Bandon

Bandon, Oregon

- Economy :Like many communities on the Oregon coast, Bandon had significant fishing and timber industries, which were greatly diminished by the 1980s, though some remnants still exist. Bandon's current economy revolves around wood products, fishing, tourism, and agriculture...

. Route 42S is the former alignment of U.S. Route 101

U.S. Route 101 in Oregon

In the U.S. state of Oregon, U.S. Route 101, a major north–south U.S. Highway, runs through the state along the coastline near the Pacific Ocean. In Oregon, it runs from the Oregon–California border, south of Brookings, to the Oregon–Washington border on the Columbia River, between Astoria,...

.

The townsite

Townsite

A townsite is a legal subdivision of land for the development of a town or community. In the historical development of the United States, Canada, and other former British colonial nations, the filing of a townsite plat or plan was often the first legal act in the establishment of a new town or...

 of Riverton was plat

Plat

A plat in the U.S. is a map, drawn to scale, showing the divisions of a piece of land. Other English-speaking countries generally call such documents a cadastral map or plan....

ted in 1889. Riverton post office was established in 1890 and named for its situation on the river. Orlando A. Kelly, the first postmaster, was also said to have been the first settler

Settler

A settler is a person who has migrated to an area and established permanent residence there, often to colonize the area. Settlers are generally people who take up residence on land and cultivate it, as opposed to nomads...

 there.

In 1915 Riverton had a population of 200. At that time Riverton shipped coal

Coal

Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock usually occurring in rock strata in layers or veins called coal beds or coal seams. The harder forms, such as anthracite coal, can be regarded as metamorphic rock because of later exposure to elevated temperature and pressure...

 mined locally by steamboat

Steamboat

A steamboat or steamship, sometimes called a steamer, is a ship in which the primary method of propulsion is steam power, typically driving propellers or paddlewheels...

 to California

California

California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...

. The first coal mine opened in the county in 1854 and up to a quarter of people worked in what was then the region's most important industry. Riverton served as a coal-mining center for more than 50 years. In 1940, Riverton's population was 150, and the place served as a trading center for farmers who grew pea

Pea

A pea is most commonly the small spherical seed or the seed-pod of the pod fruit Pisum sativum. Each pod contains several peas. Peapods are botanically a fruit, since they contain seeds developed from the ovary of a flower. However, peas are considered to be a vegetable in cooking...

s. The post office closed in 1961. Formerly Riverton Ferry crossed the Coquille there and as of 1969, it was still being operated by the county. At one time the community had a high school and a grade school

Elementary school

An elementary school or primary school is an institution where children receive the first stage of compulsory education known as elementary or primary education. Elementary school is the preferred term in some countries, particularly those in North America, where the terms grade school and grammar...

. Circa 1901, there was a Christian Church

Christian Church (Disciples of Christ)

The Christian Church is a Mainline Protestant denomination in North America. It is often referred to as The Christian Church, The Disciples of Christ, or more simply as The Disciples...

and today there is a Riverton Community Church unaffiliated with the former one. As of 2010 there are no stores in Riverton.