Richmond started life in 1842 with just one dwelling, a 9 x 3.5 metre surveyor's hut and the name Richmond-on-Thames. Richmond was established as a rural service centre to support the outlying rural townships. While Richmond has grown beyond that of a small rural service centre, it still performs this function with a wide range of services such as banks, rest estate agents, lawyers, accountants, architects, resource management consultants and surveyors.