Redwood City is a city on the

San Francisco Peninsula The San Francisco Peninsula is a peninsula in the San Francisco Bay Area that separates San Francisco Bay from the Pacific Ocean. On its northern tip is the City and County of San Francisco. Its southern base is Mountain View, south of Palo Alt ...

in Northern

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

Bay Area The San Francisco Bay Area, often referred to as simply the Bay Area, is a populous region surrounding the San Francisco, San Pablo, and Suisun Bay estuaries in Northern California. The Bay Area is defined by the Association of Bay Area Gov ...

, approximately south of

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish for " Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the fourth most populous in California and 17t ...

, and northwest of San Jose. Redwood City's history spans its earliest inhabitation by the

Ohlone The Ohlone, formerly known as Costanoans (from Spanish meaning 'coast dweller'), are a Native American people of the Northern California coast. When Spanish explorers and missionaries arrived in the late 18th century, the Ohlone inhabited the ...

people to being a port for lumber and other goods. The

county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or civil parish. The term is in use in Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, Taiwan, and the United States. The equivalent term shire town is used in the US ...

of San Mateo County in the heart of

Silicon Valley Silicon Valley is a region in Northern California that serves as a global center for high technology and innovation. Located in the southern part of the San Francisco Bay Area, it corresponds roughly to the geographical areas San Mateo Cou ...

, Redwood City is home to several global technology companies including

Oracle An oracle is a person or agency considered to provide wise and insightful counsel or prophetic predictions, most notably including precognition of the future, inspired by deities. As such, it is a form of divination. Description The word ...

Electronic Arts Electronic Arts Inc. (EA) is an American video game company headquartered in Redwood City, California. Founded in May 1982 by Apple employee Trip Hawkins, the company was a pioneer of the early home computer game industry and promoted the ...

Evernote Evernote is a note-taking and task management application. It is developed by the Evernote Corporation, headquartered in Redwood City, California. It is intended for archiving and creating notes in which photos, audio and saved web content can ...

, Box, and

Informatica Informatica is an American software development company founded in 1993. It is headquartered in Redwood City, California. Its core products include Enterprise Cloud Data Management and Data Integration. It was co-founded by Gaurav Dhillon and Di ...

. The city's population was 84,292 according to the 2020 census. The

Port of Redwood City The Port of Redwood City is a marine freight terminal on the western side of the southern San Francisco Bay, on the West Coast of the United States. This marine terminal is situated within the city of Redwood City, California. The port was d ...

is the only deepwater port on

San Francisco Bay San Francisco Bay is a large tidal estuary in the U.S. state of California, and gives its name to the San Francisco Bay Area. It is dominated by the big cities of San Francisco, San Jose, and Oakland. San Francisco Bay drains water f ...

south of

. According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The Census Bureau is part of th ...

, the city has an area of , of which is land and (44.34%) is water. A major watercourse draining much of Redwood City is Redwood Creek, to which several significant

river delta A river delta is a landform shaped like a triangle, created by deposition of sediment that is carried by a river and enters slower-moving or stagnant water. This occurs where a river enters an ocean, sea, estuary, lake, reservoir, or (more rare ...

s connect, the largest of which is Westpoint Slough.

History

The earliest known inhabitants of the area which was to become Redwood City were the

who were present when the Spanish claimed the land and established missions. Redwood City incorporated in 1867, being the first city in San Mateo County to do so; it has remained the county seat since the county's formation in 1856. The land had been part of the

Rancho de las Pulgas Rancho de las Pulgas was a 1795 Spanish land grant in present-day San Mateo County, California to José Darío Argüello. The literal translation is "Ranch of the Fleas", probably named after a village of the local Lamchin people. The grant w ...

granted to the Argüello family in 1835 by the Mexican government. Their control was challenged after the

Mexican–American War The Mexican–American War, also known in the United States as the Mexican War and in Mexico as the (''United States intervention in Mexico''), was an armed conflict between the United States and Mexico from 1846 to 1848. It followed the ...

when California became part of the United States. The family lawyer, Simon M. Mezes, in 1854 defended the claim somewhat successfully and was allowed to buy the part of the estate that is now Redwood City. Mezes sold some of the land to people already squatting on it along the banks of Redwood Creek and named the settlement "Mezesville." Though the city did not keep that name, Mezes Park still exists on land that Mezes had given for open space. In 1907, Eikichi and Sadakusi Enomoto, Japanese immigrant brothers, grew what may perhaps have been the first commercially grown

chrysanthemum Chrysanthemums (), sometimes called mums or chrysanths, are flowering plants of the genus ''Chrysanthemum'' in the family Asteraceae. They are native to East Asia and northeastern Europe. Most species originate from East Asia and the cent ...

s in the United States in Redwood City. In 1926, the chamber of commerce proclaimed the city the "Chrysanthemum Center of the World" though the

internment of Japanese Americans Internment is the imprisonment of people, commonly in large groups, without charges or intent to file charges. The term is especially used for the confinement "of enemy citizens in wartime or of terrorism suspects". Thus, while it can simpl ...

in 1941 and other factors would contribute to the end of flower growing as a major industry in the city.

Geography

Redwood City stretches from the San Francisco Bay towards the Santa Cruz Mountains between San Carlos to the northwest and Atherton to the southeast with

Woodside Woodside may refer to: Places and buildings Australia * Woodside, South Australia, a town * Woodside, Victoria, a town Canada * Woodside National Historic Site, the boyhood home of William Lyon Mackenzie King *Woodside, Nova Scotia, a neighbo ...

to the southwest. It is divided by

Highway 101 Highway 101 was an American country music band founded in 1986 in Los Angeles, California. The initial lineup consisted of Paulette Carlson (lead vocals), Jack Daniels (guitar), Curtis Stone (bass guitar, vocals), and Scott "Cactus" Moser (drum ...

and further inland El Camino Real on the northwest–southeast axis and ''Woodside Road'' on the north-northeast/south-southwest axis. Locally, the former two are regarded as north–south and the latter east/west, as 101 and El Camino connects Redwood City to

and San Jose and Woodside Road runs from

to the

Santa Cruz Mountains The Santa Cruz Mountains, part of the Pacific Coast Ranges, are a mountain range in central and Northern California, United States. They form a ridge down the San Francisco Peninsula, south of San Francisco. They separate the Pacific Ocean from ...

. Neighborhoods include Bair Island to the northeast of Highway 101. The northern planned community of Redwood Shores, also to the northeast of Highway 101, is part of Redwood City, although it is not possible to travel by road from one to the other without passing through the neighboring city of San Carlos, or through Belmont via unincorporated San Mateo County. Stretching along Highway 101 to the southeast of Woodside Road is Friendly Acres, further inland and still to the southeast of Woodside Road are Redwood Village and then Redwood Oaks. Most neighborhoods are to the northwest of Woodside Road and southwest of Highway 101. Centennial, Downtown, and Stambaugh Heller are adjacent to 101. Next inland are Edgewood, Mt. Carmel, Central and Palm then Canyon, Eagle Hill, Roosevelt, and Woodside Plaza. Furthest inland is Farm Hills (or Farm Hill). Neighborhoods associated with Redwood City but not part of the incorporated city include Emerald Lake Hills and Kensington Square inland and to the north and North Fair Oaks to the southeast. Palomar Park, just north of Emerald Hills and east of San Carlos' Crestview area, is another Redwood City neighborhood that is formally part of unincorporated San Mateo County. Although Redwood City has a large middle class, the southeastern section of Redwood City strongly resembles working-class North Fair Oaks in both demographic makeup and income level.

Downtown

In an attempt to revitalize Redwood City's downtown, city officials decided to consider development. In February 1999, the San Mateo County History Museum opened inside the old San Mateo County Courthouse in downtown Redwood City. The courthouse had been built in 1910 and in the late '30s an addition was built in front of the original structure, obscuring the view. As part of the revitalization, this addition was torn down and replaced with a large courtyard flanked by water fountains on either side, leading to the main steps of the courthouse. The courthouse's glass dome is lit at night and changes colors every 11 seconds. In August 2006, a 20-screen theater and various shops opened in a prime downtown location. The theater complex boasts restaurant and retail space at street level and a two-level underground parking structure.

Climate

Redwood City, along with most of the Bay Area, enjoys a mild

Mediterranean climate A Mediterranean climate (also called a dry summer temperate climate ''Cs'') is a temperate climate sub-type, generally characterized by warm, dry summers and mild, fairly wet winters; these weather conditions are typically experienced in the ...

(

Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification is one of the most widely used climate classification systems. It was first published by German-Russian climatologist Wladimir Köppen (1846–1940) in 1884, with several later modifications by Köppen, nota ...

Csb), with warm, dry summers and cool, relatively wet winters. The

National Weather Service The National Weather Service (NWS) is an agency of the United States federal government that is tasked with providing weather forecasts, warnings of hazardous weather, and other weather-related products to organizations and the public for the ...

, which maintains both a forecast center and a cooperative office in Redwood City, reports that December is the coolest month and July is the warmest month. The record highest temperature of was recorded on three occasions, July 14 and 15, 1972, and September 6, 2022. The record lowest temperature of was recorded on January 11, 1949. Annually, there are an average of 21.6 days with highs of or higher and 2.8 days with highs of or higher; there are an average of 1.8 days with lows of or lower. The normal annual precipitation is . The most rainfall in one month was in February 1998. The record 24-hour rainfall of was on October 13, 1962. There are an average of 62.1 days with measurable precipitation. Snow flurries have been observed on rare occasions; there was some minor snow accumulation in May 1935, January 1962, and February 1976.

Demographics

2010

The

2010 United States Census The United States census of 2010 was the twenty-third United States national census. National Census Day, the reference day used for the census, was April 1, 2010. The census was taken via mail-in citizen self-reporting, with enumerators serving ...

reported that Redwood City had a population of 76,815. The population density was . The racial makeup of Redwood City was 46,255 (60.2%)

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White ...

, 1,881 (2.4%)

African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...

, 511 (0.7%) Native American, 8,216 (10.7%) Asian, 795 (1.0%)

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the Pacific Islands. As an ethnic/ racial term, it is used to describe the original peoples—inhabitants and diasporas—of any of the three major subregions of O ...

, 14,967 (19.5%) from

other races Other often refers to: * Other (philosophy), a concept in psychology and philosophy Other or The Other may also refer to: Film and television * ''The Other'' (1913 film), a German silent film directed by Max Mack * ''The Other'' (1930 film), a ...

, and 4,190 (5.5%) from two or more races.

Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad. The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to viceroyalties for ...

or Latino of any race were 29,810 persons (38.8%).

Non-Hispanic Whites Non-Hispanic whites or Non-Latino whites are Americans who are classified as "white", and are not of Hispanic (also known as "Latino") heritage. The United States Census Bureau defines ''white'' to include European Americans, Middle Eastern Ame ...

number 31,982 (40.9%). The Census reported that 75,268 people (98.0% of the population) lived in households, 408 (0.5%) lived in non-institutionalized group quarters, and 1,139 (1.5%) were institutionalized. There were 27,957 households, out of which 10,045 (35.9%) had children under the age of 18 living in them, 13,642 (48.8%) were opposite-sex married couples living together, 3,139 (11.2%) had a female householder with no husband present, 1,461 (5.2%) had a male householder with no wife present. There were 1,818 (6.5%) unmarried opposite-sex partnerships, and 288 (1.0%) same-sex married couples or partnerships. 7,411 households (26.5%) were made up of individuals, and 2,401 (8.6%) had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.69. There were 18,242 families (65.3% of all households); the average family size was 3.26. The population was spread out, with 18,193 people (23.7%) under the age of 18, 5,981 people (7.8%) aged 18 to 24, 24,819 people (32.3%) aged 25 to 44, 19,710 people (25.7%) aged 45 to 64, and 8,112 people (10.6%) who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36.7 years. For every 100 females, there were 99.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 98.1 males. There were 29,167 housing units at an average density of , of which 14,160 (50.6%) were owner-occupied, and 13,797 (49.4%) were occupied by renters. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.3%; the rental vacancy rate was 3.9%. 37,757 people (49.2% of the population) lived in owner-occupied housing units and 37,511 people (48.8%) lived in rental housing units.

2000

In 2000, there were 75,402 people, 27,423 households and 17,898 families residing in the city. The population density was . There were 29,568 housing units at an average density of . 47.1% spoke

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ...

, 39.6%

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Can ...

, 2.4% Chinese or Mandarin, other

Indo-European The Indo-European languages are a language family native to the overwhelming majority of Europe, the Iranian plateau, and the northern Indian subcontinent. Some European languages of this family, English, French, Portuguese, Russian, Du ...

1.7%, and other language 0.5%, as their first language from estimate census 2009. There were 27,680 households, out of which 31.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 44.4% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognized union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children, and between ...

living together, 14.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 40.2% were non-families. 31.5% of all households were made up of individuals, and 6.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 4.62 and the average family size was 4.80. In the city, the population was spread out, with 30.6% under the age of 18, 14.7% from 18 to 24, 33.3% from 25 to 44, 17.4% from 45 to 64, and 7.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 28 years. For every 100 females, there were 103.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 101.4 males. According to a 2009 estimate, the median

income Income is the consumption and saving opportunity gained by an entity within a specified timeframe, which is generally expressed in monetary terms. Income is difficult to define conceptually and the definition may be different across fields. Fo ...

for a household in the city was $69,679, and the median income for a family was $77,964.

Disposable income Disposable income is total personal income minus current income taxes. In national accounts definitions, personal income minus personal current taxes equals disposable personal income. Subtracting personal outlays (which includes the major ...

is relatively constant when Redwood City is compared with the rest of the country. Males had a median income of $47,345 versus $44,125 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or total income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. It is calculated by dividing the area's total income by its total population. Per capita i ...

for the city was $31,042. About 8.4% of families and 10.2% of the population were below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for ...

, including 11.1% of those under age 18 and 9.4% of those age 65 or over.

Government

Redwood City's charter provides for a councilor-manager form of government. The City Council appoints the City Manager and adopts policies, which the City Manager is expected to implement. The City Manager appoints and manages most of Redwood City's department heads (the City Clerk and City Attorney being notable exceptions). The City Council seats are currently held by Mayor Giselle Hale, Vice Mayor Diana Reddy, Alicia C. Aguirre (District 7), Elmer Martinez Saballos (District 4), Lissette Espinoza-Guernica (District 3), Jeff Gee (District 1), and Diane Howard. The current City Manager is Melissa Stevenson Diaz. In the

California State Legislature The California State Legislature is a bicameral state legislature consisting of a lower house, the California State Assembly, with 80 members; and an upper house, the California State Senate, with 40 members. Both houses of the Legislatu ...

, Redwood City is in , and in . In the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they ...

, Redwood City is split between California's 14th and

18th 18 (eighteen) is the natural number following 17 and preceding 19. In mathematics * Eighteen is a composite number, its divisors being 1, 2, 3, 6 and 9. Three of these divisors (3, 6 and 9) add up to 18, hence 18 is a semiperfect numb ...

congressional districts, represented by and , respectively. According to the

California Secretary of State The secretary of state of California is the chief clerk of the U.S. state of California, overseeing a department of 500 people. The secretary of state is elected for four year terms, like the state's other constitutional officers; the officeh ...

, as of February 10, 2019, Redwood City has 41,866 registered voters. Of those, 21,213 (50.1%) are registered Democrats, 6,249 (14.9%) are registered Republicans, and 12,777 (30.5%) have

declined to state Decline to State (DTS) was an affiliation designation on the California voter registration form that allows voters to register to vote without choosing a party affiliation. It is similar to what in other states would be called declaring oneself as ...

a political party.

Landmarks

* Union Cemetery, State Historical Landmark #816 * Fox Theatre *

Lathrop House The Lathrop House, also known as the Bryan Lathrop House, is a Georgian style house at 120 E Bellevue Place in the Gold Coast neighborhood of Chicago, Illinois, United States. The house was built in 1892 by McKim, Mead & White for Bryan L ...

* Sequoia High School

Parks

Preserves include Bair Island Ecological Preserve (State) and the Don Edwards National Wildlife Refuge on the shoreline.

Edgewood County Park Edgewood County Park and Natural Preserve is a 467-acre protected area located in San Mateo County, California, United States, and is best known for its spring wildflower displays. The park receives about 50,000 visitors each year. Description E ...

known for its wildflowers is towards the

with entrances off Edgewood Road and Cañada Road. City parks include * Andrew Spinas Park () – 2nd Ave./Bay Rd. Established in 1966 and named for Andrew L. Spinas a long time Redwood City teacher and school superintendent who served on the Parks and Recreation Commission from 1938 to 1953. * Dolphin Park () – Turks Head/Quay Ln. * Dove Beeger Park () – Whipple Ave./Circle Rd. * Fleishman Park () – Locust St./McEvoy St. * Garrett Park () – 3600 Block Glenwood Ave. Named for George L. Garrett, Jr who was a Redwood City police officer killed in 1981. * Hawes Park () – Hudson St./Roosevelt Ave. Built in 1934 and named for Horace Hawes, state assemblyman, who in 1864 donated land and money to the city for a new school. * Hoover Park () – Woodside Rd./Spring St. * Jardin de Niños () – Middlefield Rd./Chestnut St. * Linden Park () – Linden St./Park St. * Maddux Park () – Maddux Dr./Kensington Rd. * Mariner Park () – Tiller Lane/Bridge Parkway * Marlin Park () – Neptune Dr./Cringle Dr. * Mezes Park () – Warren St./Standish St. Named for Simon Mezes who donated the land in 1856. * Palm Park () – Hudson St./Palm Ave. * Preserve Park () – 99 Shearwater Parkway * Red Morton Community Park () – 1120 Roosevelt Ave. * Sandpiper Park () – Redwood Shores Parkway and Egret Ln. * Shannon Park () – Davit Lane/Shannon Way * Shore Dogs Park () – 1300 Block Radio Rd. * Shorebird Park () – Marine Parkway/Island Dr. * Stafford Park () – King St./Hopkins Ave. Established in 1946 and named for the donor, Daniel R. Stafford (1870–1948) who had been a Redwood City grocer, city clerk, and mayor. * Stulsaft Park () – 3737 Farm Hill Blvd. Established in 1951 and named for the real estate developer, Morris Stulsaft, who donated the land. * Wellesley Crescent Park () – Edgewood Rd./Arlington Rd. * Westwood Park () – Westwood St./Briarfield Ave.

Education

Redwood City has one state community college,

Cañada College Cañada College is a public community college in Redwood City, California. It is located on in the western part of Redwood City. It is one of the smallest community colleges in the San Francisco Bay Area. History In 1957, the San Mateo Jun ...

. It has elementary and middle schools operated by both the

Redwood City School District Redwood City School District (RCSD) is the public elementary school district serving Redwood City, California. As of 2019–2020 school year, the district serves over 8,500 students in 16 schools. Schools Elementary Schools (grades K-8) * Cliff ...

and the

Belmont – Redwood Shores School District Belmont – Redwood Shores School District (BRSSD) is a K8 school district in California that serves the Belmont and Redwood Shores areas. The district's schools and their principals include: *Central Elementary School Charles Donovan *Cipr ...

. At the high school level it is part of the

Sequoia Union High School District The Sequoia Union High School District is a public union school district in the San Francisco Bay Area, primarily serving the southern San Mateo County communities of Atherton, Belmont, East Palo Alto, Ladera, San Carlos, Menlo Park, Portol ...

and high schools in Redwood City that are part of this district are the comprehensive Sequoia High School, the

charter school A charter school is a school that receives government funding but operates independently of the established state school system in which it is located. It is independent in the sense that it operates according to the basic principle of autono ...

Summit Preparatory Charter High School Summit Preparatory Charter High School also known as Summit Prep, is a college preparatory and charter high school that was founded in 2003. Summit Prep is the first school founded by the charter management organization (CMO) Summit Public Schools ...

and

Everest Public High School Everest Public High School is a College preparatory school, college preparatory, tuition-free, and public Charter school, charter high school in Redwood City, California, United States. The school, which was modeled after Summit Preparatory Charte ...

, and the

continuation school A continuation high school is an alternative to a comprehensive high school. In some countries it is primarily for students who are considered at risk of not graduating at the normal pace. The requirements to graduate are the same, but the sch ...

Redwood High School. Many students from Redwood City attend another Sequoia Union school, Woodside High School, in the neighboring town of

. The community of Redwood Shores is served by the

Belmont - Redwood Shores School District Belmont may refer to: People * Belmont (surname) Places * Belmont Abbey (disambiguation) * Belmont Historic District (disambiguation) * Belmont Hotel (disambiguation) * Belmont Park (disambiguation) * Belmont Plantation (disambiguation) * ...

and

Carlmont High School Carlmont High School is a public high school in Belmont, California, United States serving grades 9–12 as part of the Sequoia Union High School District. Carlmont is a California Distinguished School. Carlmont was founded in 1952 as "a sch ...

. The Redwood City Public Library, a member of the

Peninsula Library System The Peninsula Library System (PLS) is a consortium of public and community college libraries in San Mateo County, California, United States, which serves the part of the San Francisco Bay Area known as " The Peninsula". The system has dozens of br ...

, has a Downtown Library and two neighborhood branch locations: Redwood Shores and Schaberg. The city's first library opened in 1865 and in 1900 the city passed a special tax to support a free public library. In 1904,

Andrew Carnegie Andrew Carnegie (, ; November 25, 1835August 11, 1919) was a Scottish-American industrialist and philanthropist. Carnegie led the expansion of the American steel industry in the late 19th century and became one of the richest Americans in ...

gave $10,000 for a new library; he gave another $6,000 to rebuild it after it was destroyed in the

1906 San Francisco earthquake At 05:12 Pacific Standard Time on Wednesday, April 18, 1906, the coast of Northern California was struck by a major earthquake with an estimated moment magnitude of 7.9 and a maximum Mercalli intensity of XI (''Extreme''). High-intensity ...

. In 1959, the Schaberg Branch Library opened, funded by a bequest in the will of Hannah Schaberg, widow of former County Clerk Herman W. Schaberg. The Redwood Shores Branch Library was completed and opened to the public in 2008.

Transportation

U.S. Route 101 U.S. Route 101, or U.S. Highway 101 (US 101), is a north–south United States Numbered Highway that runs through the states of California, Oregon, and Washington, on the West Coast of the United States. It is also known as (The Royal Roa ...

passes through Redwood City as it goes along the Peninsula. Other major thoroughfares include El Camino Real, Route 82; Woodside Rd, Route 84, and

I-280 Interstate 280 may refer to multiple highways, all of which are or were related to Interstate 80: * Interstate 280 (California), a north–south freeway running from San Jose to San Francisco * Interstate 280 (Iowa–Illinois), part of the beltway ...

, which passes west of the city. Redwood City has a stop on

Caltrain Caltrain (reporting mark JPBX) is a California commuter rail line serving the San Francisco Peninsula and Santa Clara Valley (Silicon Valley). The southern terminus is in San Jose at Tamien station with weekday rush hour service running as fa ...

, and local bus service is provided by

SamTrans SamTrans (stylized as samTrans; officially the San Mateo County Transit District) is a public transport agency in and around San Mateo, California, in the San Francisco Bay Area. It provides bus service throughout San Mateo County and into porti ...

Slogan

Redwood City's slogan, emblazoned on arches across Broadway at the east and west entrances to downtown, is "Climate Best By Government Test". This is based on a climatological survey conducted by the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...

and

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

governments prior to

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

. The area centered on Redwood City tied for the world's best climate with the

Canary Islands The Canary Islands (; es, :es:Canarias, Canarias, ), also known informally as the Canaries, are a Spanish Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community and archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean, in Macaronesia. At their closest point to ...

and North Africa's Mediterranean Coast. The local paper had a contest for a city slogan to attract new residents and Wilbur Doxsee entered "By Government Test, Our Climate is Best" which won the $10 prize money in 1925.

Independence Day parade

Redwood City's

Independence Day An independence day is an annual event commemorating the anniversary of a nation's independence or statehood, usually after ceasing to be a group or part of another nation or state, or more rarely after the end of a military occupation. Many ...

parade sponsored by the Peninsula Celebration Association, held continuously since 1939, has been billed variously as 'The largest Independence Day Parade in California', 'West of the Mississippi', or 'in North America', claims which may or may not be accurate. The first verifiable written records of celebrations date to 1861, and 1887 for a parade.

Media

Games

* The 3rd person Action Adventure Tomb Raider developer

Crystal Dynamics Crystal Dynamics, Inc. is an American video game developer based in San Mateo, California and part of Embracer Group. The studio developed the '' Gex'', ''Legacy of Kain'', and ''Tomb Raider'' series. Founded in 1992 by Madeline Canepa, Judy L ...

is based in Redwood City.

Media companies

Ampex Corporation Ampex is an American electronics company founded in 1944 by Alexander M. Poniatoff as a spin-off of Dalmo-Victor. The name AMPEX is a portmanteau, created by its founder, which stands for Alexander M. Poniatoff Excellence.AbramsoThe History ...

, a pioneer and major developer of the audio recording, video recording, and data storage industries, headquartered management, engineering, and manufacturing in Redwood City for decades. * Several DreamWorks animated films (e.g., ''

Antz ''Antz'' is a 1998 American computer-animated adventure comedy film produced by DreamWorks Animation (in its debut film) and Pacific Data Images and released by DreamWorks Pictures. It was directed by Eric Darnell and Tim Johnson (in their fe ...

'' (1998), ''

Shrek ''Shrek'' is a 2001 American computer-animated comedy film loosely based on the 1990 book of the same name by William Steig. It is the first installment in the ''Shrek'' franchise. The film was directed by Andrew Adamson and Vicky Jen ...

'' (2001), ''

Shrek 2 ''Shrek 2'' is a 2004 American computer-animated comedy film loosely based on the 1990 picture book '' Shrek!'' by William Steig, produced by DreamWorks Animation and released by DreamWorks Pictures. The sequel to ''Shrek'' (2001) and the ...

'' (2004), and ''

Madagascar Madagascar (; mg, Madagasikara, ), officially the Republic of Madagascar ( mg, Repoblikan'i Madagasikara, links=no, ; french: République de Madagascar), is an island country in the Indian Ocean, approximately off the coast of East Afric ...

'' (2005)) were made by PDI/DreamWorks (the Northern California branch of

DreamWorks Animation DreamWorks Animation LLC (DWA, also known as DreamWorks Animation Studios and simply known as DreamWorks) is an American animation studio that produces animated films and television programs and is a subsidiary of Universal Pictures, a divisio ...

), which moved to Redwood City from nearby Palo Alto (Park Drive) in October 2002. * Video game publisher

is based in the Redwood Shores neighborhood of Redwood City. * Formerly the home to the headquarters of the video game hardware/software developer

Sega of America is a Japanese multinational video game and entertainment company headquartered in Shinagawa, Tokyo. Its international branches, Sega of America and Sega Europe, are headquartered in Irvine, California and London, respectively. Its divis ...

. *

ABS-CBN International The Filipino Channel, commonly known as TFC, is a 24-hour global subscription television network based in Daly City, California with studios in Redwood City, California and offices in Africa, Australia, Brazil, Canada, Cayman Islands, UAE, Ethio ...

, a subsidiary of the Filipino media conglomerate

ABS-CBN Corporation ABS-CBN Corporation is a Filipino media company based in Quezon City, Metro Manila, Philippines. It is the largest entertainment and media conglomerate in the Philippines. It is a subsidiary of Lopez Holdings Corporation which is owned b ...

is based in 150 Shoreline Drive.

Economy

Ampex Ampex is an American electronics company founded in 1944 by Alexander M. Poniatoff as a spin-off of Dalmo-Victor. The name AMPEX is a portmanteau, created by its founder, which stands for Alexander M. Poniatoff Excellence.AbramsoThe History ...

, Avangate,

BigBand Networks BigBand Networks was a corporation headquartered in Redwood City, California, that opened in 1999 and specialized in selling multimedia technologies to cable television multi-system operators. It had its IPO on the Nasdaq in 2007, which was m ...

BroadVision BroadVision is an international software vendor of self-service web applications for enterprise social software, electronic commerce, enterprise portals, and customer relationship management. The company provides applications to businesses. In a ...

DPR Construction DPR Construction is a commercial general contractor and construction management firm based in Redwood City, California. The privately-held, employee-owned company has 30 offices throughout the United States and specializes in technically complex ...

GoFundMe GoFundMe is an American for-profit crowdfunding platform that allows people to raise money for events ranging from life events such as celebrations and graduations to challenging circumstances like accidents and illnesses. From 2010 to the be ...

iPass Inc. IPass may refer to: * I-Pass, an electronic toll collection system in Illinois, United States * iPASS (Taiwan), a contactless smartcard used in Taiwan * iPass (company), a technology company headquartered in California, United States * A mini-S ...

, Jivox,

Openwave Openwave (formerly software.com, phone.com, and Libris, Inc) is a division of Enea. It provides video traffic management and 5G mobile products. Two of Openwave's former products launched as private companies; Openwave Mobility and Openwave ...

Shutterfly Shutterfly, LLC. is an American photography, photography products, and image sharing company, headquartered in Redwood City, California. The company is mainly known for custom photo printing services, including books featuring user-provided im ...

Support.com Support.com, Inc. is a technical support company for businesses and consumers. It is headquartered in Wilmington, Delaware with administrative office in Sunnyvale, California. The company's services are performed on Windows, macOS, iOS, and Andro ...

Equinix Equinix, Inc. is an American multinational company headquartered in Redwood City, California, that specializes in Internet connection and data centers. The company is a leader in global colocation data center market share, with 240 data centers ...

, i2c Inc,

YuMe is the Japanese word for dream, and may refer to: People *, Japanese rugby sevens player *, Japanese actress *, Japanese rugby sevens player *, Japanese gravure idol and actress *, Japanese professional footballer Entertainment * YuMe, a mult ...

, and iCracked are based in Redwood City. Additionally,

All Nippon Airways , also known as ANA (''Ē-enu-ē'') or is an airline in Japan. Its headquarters are located in Shiodome City Center in the Shiodome area of Minato ward of Tokyo. It operates services to both domestic and international destinations and had m ...

operates an office in Suite 350 at 555 Twin Dolphin Drive in Redwood City. Until 1999

Sega is a Japanese multinational video game and entertainment company headquartered in Shinagawa, Tokyo. Its international branches, Sega of America and Sega Europe, are headquartered in Irvine, California and London, respectively. Its division ...

operated its United States headquarters in Redwood City; during that year the headquarters moved to

. The 3DO Company, when it existed, had its headquarters in Redwood City. In addition to large tech companies, there is also a vibrant small business community in the town.

Cargill salt ponds

Cargill Cargill, Incorporated, is a privately held American global food corporation based in Minnetonka, Minnesota, and incorporated in Wilmington, Delaware. Founded in 1865, it is the largest privately held corporation in the United States in te ...

has operated salt ponds in Redwood City, and has proposed development of the ponds, resulting in demands for restoration of some of the land. The plans are currently stalled.

Top employers

* As of 2020, the top employers in the city were:

Sister cities

Zhuhai Zhuhai (, ; Yale: ''Jyūhói''), also known as Chuhai is a prefecture-level city located on the west bank of Pearl River estuary on the central coast of southern Guangdong province, People's Republic of China, on the southeastern edge of P ...

Guangdong Guangdong (, ), alternatively romanized as Canton or Kwangtung, is a coastal province in South China on the north shore of the South China Sea. The capital of the province is Guangzhou. With a population of 126.01 million (as of 2020 ...

, China, became a sister city in 1993. It was Redwood City's first. *

Colima, Colima Colima () is a city that is the capital of the Colima state and the seat of Colima municipality, located in central−western Mexico. It is located near the Colima volcano, which divides the small state from that of Jalisco. The city of Colima ...

, Mexico, became a sister city in 1998. *

Ciudad Guzman Ciudad () is the Spanish word for City Ciudad may also refer to: *La Ciudad (archaeological site), Hohokam ruins in Phoenix, Arizona *La Ciudad, district of Durango City, Mexico *''La ciudad'', novel by Mario Levrero 1970 *La Ciudad ''The City'' ...

Jalisco Jalisco (, , ; Nahuatl: Xalixco), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Jalisco ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Jalisco ; Nahuatl: Tlahtohcayotl Xalixco), is one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, comprise the 32 Federal ...

, Mexico, became a sister city in 2013. *

Qingyuan Qingyuan, formerly romanized as Tsingyun, is a prefecture-level city in northern Guangdong province, China, on the banks of the Bei or North River. During the 2020 census, its total population was 3,969,473, out of whom 1,738,424 lived in the ...

, Guangdong, China, became a friendship city in 2015. * Aguililla, Michoacan, Mexico, became a sister city in 2017, after becoming a friendship city in 2013.

Notable people

Politicians

Jon Huntsman Jr. Jon Meade Huntsman Jr. (born March 26, 1960) is an American businessman, diplomat and politician who served as the 16th Governor of Utah from 2005 to 2009. A member of the Republican Party, he served as the Ambassador of the United States t ...

, American politician and diplomat * Karl W. Hofmann, diplomat, ambassador and president of

Population Services International Population Services International (PSI) is a 501(c)(3) registered nonprofit global health organization with programs targeting malaria, child survival, HIV, and reproductive health. PSI provides products, clinical services and behavior chan ...

* William Royer, former mayor of Redwood City (1956-1960)

Sports

Davante Adams Davante Lavell Adams (born December 24, 1992) is an American football wide receiver for the Las Vegas Raiders of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Fresno State, and was selected by the Green Bay Packers in the se ...

, professional football wide receiver for the

Las Vegas Raiders The Las Vegas Raiders are a professional American football team based in the Las Vegas metropolitan area. The Raiders compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) West div ...

Kevin Bass Kevin Charles Bass (born May 12, 1959) is a former American professional baseball right fielder who played in Major League Baseball for the Milwaukee Brewers (1982), Houston Astros (1982–1989, 1993–1994), San Francisco Giants (1990–1992) ...

MLB Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...

right fielder for the

Houston Astros The Houston Astros are an American professional baseball team based in Houston, Texas. The Astros compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division, having moved to the division in 2013 after s ...

and the

San Francisco Giants The San Francisco Giants are an American professional baseball team based in San Francisco, California. The Giants compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Founded in 1883 as the New Yo ...

Geoff Blum Geoffrey Edward Blum (born April 26, 1973) is an American former professional baseball infielder in Major League Baseball who played for the Montreal Expos, Houston Astros, Tampa Bay Devil Rays, San Diego Padres, Chicago White Sox and Arizona Dia ...

, MLB infielder and broadcaster *

Eric Byrnes Eric James Byrnes (born February 16, 1976), is a baseball analyst and former professional baseball outfielder. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Oakland Athletics, Colorado Rockies, Baltimore Orioles, Arizona Diamondbacks, and Se ...

, MLB

outfielder An outfielder is a person playing in one of the three defensive positions in baseball or softball, farthest from the batter. These defenders are the left fielder, the center fielder, and the right fielder. As an outfielder, their duty is to cat ...

Joe Biagini Joseph Carlo Biagini (born May 29, 1990) is an American professional baseball pitcher who is currently a free agent. He has played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Blue Jays, Houston Astros and Chicago Cubs. The San Francisco Giants se ...

, MLB player for the Toronto Blue Jays *

Greg Camarillo Greg Camarillo ( ; born April 18, 1982) is a former American football wide receiver. He played college football at Stanford. He was signed by the San Diego Chargers as an undrafted free agent in 2005. Camarillo also played for the Miami Dolp ...

, NFL wide receiver * Chris Carter, MLB first baseman * Jeff Clark, big wave surfer *

Daniel Descalso Daniel William Descalso (born October 19, 1986) is an American former professional baseball infielder. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the St. Louis Cardinals, Colorado Rockies, Arizona Diamondbacks and Chicago Cubs. Early life Ita ...

, MLB infielder *

Julian Edelman Julian Francis Edelman (born May 22, 1986) is a former American football wide receiver who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 12 seasons with the New England Patriots. He played college football at Kent State as a Quarterback and ...

, NFL wide receiver, 3-time

Super Bowl Champion The Super Bowl is the annual American football game that determines the champion of the National Football League (NFL). The game culminates a season that begins in the previous calendar year, and is the conclusion of the NFL playoffs. The winner ...

, and the MVP of

Super Bowl LIII Super Bowl LIII was an American football game played to determine the champion of the National Football League (NFL) for the 2018 season. The American Football Conference (AFC) champion New England Patriots defeated the National Football Confe ...

* Daniel Nava, MLB outfielder *

Brian Shima Brian Matthew Isoa Shima (born December 22, 1981) is a former professional inline skater. He also holds the record for the most pro skates held by any person. Shima owned his own skate brand, named Shima Skate Manufacturing, also known as SSM, w ...

, professional inline skater * Regan Smith, Olympic swimmer, record holder in 200m backstroke and 100m backstroke * Zach Test (born 1989), rugby union player *

Matangi Tonga ''Matangi Tonga'' is an online newspaper providing Tongan news in both English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', ...

, American football player * Roy Williams, 5x time NFL Pro Bowler *

Lily Zhang Lily Ann Zhang (born June 16, 1996) is an American table tennis player who competed in the 2012 Summer Olympics in London with teammates Ariel Hsing and Erica Wu. She also competed in the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio with teammates Jiaqi Zheng ...

, Olympic table tennis player

Entertainment

Cedric Bixler-Zavala Cedric Bixler-Zavala (born November 4, 1974) is an American singer and songwriter. He is the lead singer and lyricist of the progressive rock band The Mars Volta and the only constant member of the post-hardcore group At the Drive-In, for whic ...

, musician *

Linda Cardellini Linda Edna Cardellini (born June 25, 1975) is an American actress. In television, she is known for her leading roles in the teen drama '' Freaks and Geeks'' (1999–2000), the medical drama '' ER'' (2003–09), the drama thriller '' Bloodline'' ...

, actress *

Bela Lugosi Béla Ferenc Dezső Blaskó (; October 20, 1882 – August 16, 1956), known professionally as Bela Lugosi (; ), was a Hungarian and American actor best remembered for portraying Count Dracula in the 1931 horror classic ''Dracula'', Ygor in ''S ...

, actor * Joyce MacKenzie, actress *

Ross Malinger Ross Aaron Malinger (born July 7, 1984) is an American former actor and automobile salesperson. He is best known for his roles as Jonah Baldwin in the 1993 movie ''Sleepless in Seattle'', starring Tom Hanks, and as Bobby Jameson in the 1997 Disney ...

, actor * Lydia Pense, musician and singer * Chris Roberts, developer of ''

Wing Commander Wing commander (Wg Cdr in the RAF, the IAF, and the PAF, WGCDR in the RNZAF and RAAF, formerly sometimes W/C in all services) is a senior commissioned rank in the British Royal Air Force and air forces of many countries which have historical ...

'' *

Chelsi Smith Chelsi Mariam Pearl Smith (August 23, 1973 – September 8, 2018) was an American actress, singer, television host and beauty queen who was crowned Miss USA 1995 and Miss Universe 1995. Smith was the third Miss USA of African-Americans, African- ...

(1973–2018),

Miss USA 1995 Miss USA 1995 was the 44th Miss USA pageant, held at South Padre Island Convention Centre on South Padre Island, Texas culminating in the final competition and crowning on February 10, 1995. At the conclusion of the final competition, Chelsi ...

Miss Universe 1995 Miss Universe 1995, the 44th Miss Universe pageant, was held on 12 May 1995 at the Windhoek Country Club Resort in Windhoek, Namibia. Chelsi Smith of the United States was crowned by Sushmita Sen of India at the end of the event. Eighty-two con ...

winner

Notes

External links

*
Port of Redwood City

Downtown Redwood City

San Mateo Daily Journal, a local newspaper

The Spectrum Magazine – Redwood City's monthly magazine
{{Authority control 1867 establishments in California Butterfield Overland Mail in California Cities in San Mateo County, California Cities in the San Francisco Bay Area County seats in California Incorporated cities and towns in California Populated places established in 1867 Populated coastal places in California