Redmond is a city in Deschutes County, Oregon, United States. Incorporated on July 6, 1910, the city is on the eastern side of Oregon’s Cascade Range, in the High Desert in Central Oregon. Take a look below for 20 amazing and fun facts about Redmond, Oregon, United States.
1. From Redmond there is access to recreational opportunities. Redmond is a full-service municipality and one of the fastest-growing industrial and residential communities in Oregon.
2. Redmond had a population of 32,421 in 2019, and the population continues to grow at a rate of about 6.7 percent each year.
3. The city encompasses 15.5 square miles (40 km2) and is on a plateau, at an elevation of 3,077 feet (938 m).
4. Redmond is 15 miles (24 km) north of Bend—the county seat of Deschutes County—144 miles (232 km) from Portland, 129 miles (208 km) from Salem—the capital of Oregon—and 126 miles (203 km) from Eugene.
5. Redmond was named after Frank T. Redmond, who settled in the area in 1905.
6. It was platted in 1906 by a company which would become part of Central Oregon Irrigation District building a canal.
7. Electrification and the Oregon Trunk Railway reached Redmond in 1911.
8. The rail link opened markets for farmers and merchants. By 1930, the town had grown to 1,000 and by 1940 had nearly doubled.
9. In the 1940s, Redmond was a U.S. Army Air base and commercial air service was established at Roberts Field after World War II.
10. From the 1950s through most of the 1980s, the population remained relatively static, growing slowly around a small commercial/retail center and manufacturing industry. However, during the 1990s, the population began to grow along with most of Deschutes County.
11. Between 2000 and 2006, Redmond’s population grew 74.3%, placing it among Oregon’s fastest-growing cities each year.
12. This growth continued through 2006, increasing the population to 23,500. Its growth is fueled by employment and a lower cost of living.
13. The Horse Lava Tube System enters the city at the point of the Redmond Caves. The lava flow that created the system continues into the Redmond Canyon to Crooked River Ranch.
14. A major employer is Redmond Air Center, at the Redmond Airport. This is a Forest Service smoke-jumping, firefighting and training installation.
15. T-Mobile USA had a call center in Redmond which employed more than 700.
16. T-Mobile made plans to close this facility in June 2013, but Oregon-based Consumer Cellular moved to sublease the call center and rehire some of T-Mobile’s former employees. As of 2012 the Consumer Cellular call center employed more than 200 people, with plans to grow the facility to 650 employees.
17. The Redmond Spokesman newspaper is the city’s oldest continuously operating business, printing its first issue July 14, 1910. Publishers Henry and Clara Palmer moved their press for the Laidlaw Chronicle to Redmond, competing with the existing Oregon Hub and Enterprise newspapers, now defunct.
18. The Eagle Crest Resort, 6 miles (10 km) west of Redmond, is one of eight destination resorts as defined by Oregon’s Department of Land Conservation and Development. Eagle Crest is one of Redmond’s major employers, and one of Deschutes County’s largest corporate tax payers.
19. Redmond lies at the intersection of U.S. Route 126 and U.S. Route 97. The latter runs on an expressway alignment through the city known as the Redmond Parkway.
20. Les AuCoin, a nine-term member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Oregon’s First District, grew up in Redmond, attending the city’s public schools from the first grade until graduation from Redmond Union High School (as it was called then) in 1960.
