Riverside is on Texas State Highway 19, thirteen miles northeast of Huntsville in Walker County. It was founded by the Houston and Great Northern Railroad in 1872 on the west bank of the Trinity River. The community provided easy access for rail and river freight. A post office was moved from Newport to Riverside in 1872, and William D. Shaw was the first Riverside postmaster. Early in its history Riverside was surrounded by cotton fields; later, lumber gradually replaced cotton in economic importance. Then stock raising became important, and the town provided stockyards. By the mid-1880s Riverside had a population of 200, a gristmill, two hotels, and two general stores. Ten years later it had three churches, two schools, two sawmills, a cotton gin, a saloon, and a restaurant. By 1914 its population had declined to fifty. The community received a boost in 1920 when fuller’s earth was discovered in the area and two refining plants were established near the town. In 1933 Riverside had seven businesses, three churches, two schools, and a population of 300. The population remained at about that level until the 1960s, when the community schools were consolidated into the Huntsville system. In 1968 Riverside voted to incorporate, and in 1973 a community fire department was organized. As of the 2022 census, the official population was 522. However, Riverside is a beautiful 2^nd home, vacation, and weekend getaway destination for many.