As a first step in creating a Richmond Historic District, the Fort Bend Museum Association and the City of Richmond traded properties in 1995. Following the trade of the 1896 Fort Bend County Jail from the Museum to the City of Richmond, and the trade of the 1880's McFarlane Home from the City to the Museum, several efforts to develop a historic district began in 1996. These efforts began with the adaptive re-use of the Jail building for the new Richmond police facility which opened in Spring, 1999. The City and the Museum continued the successful partnership to develop a historic district through preservation planning, park development, and promotion of business in the area. The McFarlane Home may ultimately serve as a center of these efforts and as a Richmond Visitor Center.
Richmond City Commissioners created a Richmond Historic District on July 12, 1999 by approving an Ordinance that also establishes a six-member Richmond Historic District Commission. The Commission will review future construction plans and building improvements within the district.
The six-square block district is bordered on the north by Morton Cemetery, the south by Houston Street, the west by Seventh Street and the east by the Brazos River.
Some of the structures included in the Richmond Historic District are the Richmond Police Department, The Fort Bend Museum Complex, the Fort Bend County Courthouse, Decker Park, and the downtown business district.