Redmond Historical Society

McRedmond and Perrigo Arrive

The first settlers in the Redmond area were Luke McRedmond (1820?-1898) and Warren Perrigo (1836-?). Arriving in the area in 1871, McRedmond took up a claim along the Sammamish River, while Perrigo took up land just east of him.

In 1850, McRedmond left Ireland during the potato famine, and immigrated to the United States. He traveled across the country, and settled at Port Madison in Kitsap County. There, he took up service as county commissioner and sheriff. Perrigo, a Civil War veteran, and his wife Laura, had traveled around Cape Horn from New England in 1866 and, like McRedmond, also settled in Kitsap County.

Both men had wanted to homestead. After visiting areas east of Seattle, they decided to file claims in the Sammamish Valley where the soil was rich and the waters bountiful. Immediately after filing claims they started to clear their land.