Riddle's eleven years at Wool's Orphanage in London are what
one might colloquially consider his 'lost years,' because aside from
a few scattered incidents, there are no major life events to speak of
outside of his birth and visit by Albus Dumbledore in 1937. However,
this isn't to say that these years were unimportant in his
development – quite the contrary, actually. Many magical historians
have speculated that the intense hatred Riddle felt toward muggles
likely bloomed during these years, although the exact cause cannot be
pinpointed. Some believe it was due to the abandonment he experienced
as a young boy that allowed for the festering of hatred, while others
yet believe it was merely a psychotic streak in the man.

Whatever one might believe on the matter, it is irrefutable that
Riddle's years at Wool's Orphanage are worth noting, even so be it in
scattered events and generalized feelings from the time. After Merope
Gaunt's peculiar death in 1926, many of the staff at Wool's Orphange,
most particularly that of the caretaker Mrs. Cole whom Merope (and
later, Albus Dumbledore) had contact with, believed Merope to be a
'circus performer.' The odd circumstances of her appearance and
subsequent disappearance explain this, considering the affinity
muggles often have for explaining away the magical. It is uncertain
whether or not Riddle knew what the staff believed this of his
mother.

What is known about Tom Riddle in the years before being
visited by Albus Dumbledore is his knack for torturing his fellow
orphans. For example, a muggle boy by the name of Billy Stubbs
reportedly had his pet rabbit strung from the rafters, presumably by
magical means, the day after he and Tom Riddle were known to have had
an argument. Likewise and even more disturbing was the incident
involving muggles Dennis Bishop and Amy Benson. For reasons unknown,
Riddle escorted these two to a cave near where a trip had been taken
by the orphanage (the name of which is Crystal Cave – the same cave
which Riddle would later return to and use as a hiding place for
Salazar Slytherin's locket, by then one of his seven horcruxes). It
was there that he did something so terrible to the two that they were
never the same again, both acting “funny.” They were from then on
out too traumatized to speak of what had been done to them in the
cave.

It would be revealed in Albus Dumbledore's visit with Riddle that
during this time Tom could make things float and move to his will,
manipulate creatures to do his bidding, and, most ominously, speak
Parseltongue, as could the Gaunt family before him. To what extent he
revealed such abilities to the muggles amongst him is unclear.

At some point before September 1, 1937, Albus Dumbledore
(then a professor at Hogwarts) visited Wool's Orphanage personally in
search of Tom Riddle. The details of the visit are vague but
chilling; although there are conspiracy theories that insist
Dumbledore was aware of the dark magic Riddle was capable of, it is
widely acknowledged that even he was ignorant to the destruction the
young boy would one day create. It is known that Dumbledore proved
himself to be magical by setting a chest of drawers on fire, and that
Tom was relatively unsurprised to hear he was a wizard. He revealed a
few crucial details of himself to Dumbledore, such as his fear of
death, a “human weakness.” His boggart, then, can be assumed to
be his own corpse.

Tom Riddle also told Dumbledore that his mother must not have been a
witch, as she was weak in her own death. Dumbledore was alarmed by
this and the love of torture Riddle seemed to have. Once having been
informed of the Ministry of Magic's strict regulations on such
actions, Riddle became closed-off and spoke less to Dumbledore; this
would set the stage to much of their relationship while Riddle
attended Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.

The two parted ways after their meeting. Riddle presumably bought
his things at Diagon Alley alone. Many of his supplies, including his
robes, were second-hand; his famous wand, however, was not. Thirteen
and a half inches, yew, with a phoenix feather core. This wand would
later go down in history, particularly for the fact that the phoenix
whose feather was used in the wand shared only one other feather.
This feather would become the core of a young Harry Potter's wand
decades later and set the stage for a duel that would unofficially
begin the Second Wizarding War. Also notable is that Riddle bought
this wand from Garick Ollivander, a man he would later torture
for information on the Elder Wand.

In his early years, Riddle is known to have resembled his father,
per his mother's last request. He also was known to detest all things
which made him 'normal,' including his own first name. Many believe
this was one of many driving forces behind his conquest thirsting for
power, although the humble opinion of this author is that it simply
resulted in the atypical name he would later choose to identify with.