El Reno is a

city A city is a human settlement of notable size.Goodall, B. (1987) ''The Penguin Dictionary of Human Geography''. London: Penguin.Kuper, A. and Kuper, J., eds (1996) ''The Social Science Encyclopedia''. 2nd edition. London: Routledge. It can be def ...

in and

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 st ...

Canadian County Canadian County is a county located in the U.S. state of Oklahoma. As of the 2020 census, the population was 154,405, making it the fifth most populous county in Oklahoma. Its county seat is El Reno. The county is named for the Canadian Ri ...

, Oklahoma, United States. As of the 2020 census, the city population was 16,989, marking a change of 1.55% from 16,729, recorded in the 2010 census. The city was begun shortly after the 1889

land rush A land run or land rush was an event in which previously restricted land of the United States was opened to homestead on a first-arrival basis. Lands were opened and sold first-come or by bid, or won by lottery, or by means other than a run. The ...

and named for the nearby Fort Reno.Cynthia Savage, "El Reno." ''Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture''.
Retrieved October 10, 2013. It is located in

Central Oklahoma Central Oklahoma is the geographical name for the central region of the U.S. state of Oklahoma. It is also known by the Oklahoma Department of Tourism designation, Frontier Country, defined as the twelve-county region including Canadian, Grady, ...

, about west of downtown Oklahoma City.

History

The land of Canadian County belonged to the historic

Cheyenne The Cheyenne ( ) are an Indigenous people of the Great Plains. Their Cheyenne language belongs to the Algonquian language family. Today, the Cheyenne people are split into two federally recognized nations: the Southern Cheyenne, who are enr ...

and

Arapaho The Arapaho (; french: Arapahos, ) are a Native American people historically living on the plains of Colorado and Wyoming. They were close allies of the Cheyenne tribe and loosely aligned with the Lakota and Dakota. By the 1850s, Arapaho ba ...

tribes at the time of European encounter. In 1874, the United States established a fort to supervise the area and General

Philip Sheridan General of the Army Philip Henry Sheridan (March 6, 1831 – August 5, 1888) was a career United States Army officer and a Union general in the American Civil War. His career was noted for his rapid rise to major general and his close as ...

took command. He named it Fort Reno in honor of his friend, Gen. Jesse L. Reno, who was killed in the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states ...

. After the 1889 landrun, there were three entities the local postmaster had to keep separate - Fort Reno, Reno City, and the community township or Village of (El) Reno. The Village of El Reno originated shortly after the 1889 land run, with the post office coming into being in June of that year. Although "el reno" means "the

reindeer Reindeer (in North American English, known as caribou if wild and ''reindeer'' if domesticated) are deer in the genus ''Rangifer''. For the last few decades, reindeer were assigned to one species, ''Rangifer tarandus'', with about 10 sub ...

" in

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 ...

, the town was actually named, in part, after nearby Fort Reno. Reindeer are not native to Oklahoma. The town's name was taken from the nearby military post of Fort Reno, with the "el" (meaning "the" in spanish) later added by the local postmaster to help differentiate the community from the also newly established Reno City. Reno City was located on the north-side of the Canadian River five miles northeast of community of El Reno. The community of El Reno was located on the south-side of the Canadian river. The original village townsite was platted by the Oklahoma Homestead and Town Company on 120 acres of the homestead of John Foreman. In 1890, Foreman's 120 acres along with 80 acres of Thomas Jensen's, were incorporated into the Village of El Reno. After the railroad company announced their rail lines were going to run on the south side of the Canadian river, Reno City relocated to the township of El Reno. The original Reno City site north of the river was abandoned. What remained and continues to this day is Fort Reno and the city of El Reno. El Reno is located on the

98th meridian west The meridian 98° west of Greenwich is a line of longitude that extends from the North Pole across the Arctic Ocean, North America, the Pacific Ocean, the Southern Ocean, and Antarctica to the South Pole. The 98th meridian west forms a great cir ...

, about 25 miles west of Oklahoma City. The eastern side of the meridian was opened to non-Indian settlement in the

Land Rush of 1889 The Oklahoma Land Rush of 1889 was the first land run into the Unassigned Lands of former Indian Territory, which had earlier been assigned to the Creek and Seminole peoples. The area that was opened to settlement included all or part of Canad ...

. The western side was opened in 1892, when the federal government also made some Cheyenne and Arapaho lands available for settlement by non-Native Americans. The town was subsequently selected as the

land district A land district is a type of administrative territorial entity in some countries. Australia The lands administrative divisions of New South Wales refers to the 141 counties within the Colony of New South Wales, that later became the Australian sta ...

office for the 1901

land lottery A land lottery is a method of allocating land ownership or the right to occupy land by lot. Some examples are: * Moses' allocation of Promised Land territory to the Israelite tribes by lot, as mandated in Numbers 26:55 and 33:54 and effected by h ...

drawings. In 1932, the United States Southwestern Reformatory was constructed about west of El Reno. The federal reformatory housed male adult federal prisoners and was later restricted to house young adult male prisoners, aged 18 to 26. In the mid-1970s it was renamed by the United States Department of Justice, Federal Bureau of Prisons, as the

Federal Correctional Institution, El Reno Federal Correctional Institution, El Reno (FCI El Reno) is a medium-security United States federal prison for male inmates in Oklahoma. It is operated by the Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP), a division of the United States Department of Justice. Th ...

(FCI El Reno). Prisoner age limits were lifted and men of all ages have been incarcerated here ever since. As medium-security prison, it has become the fifth-largest federal prison in the U.S. The prison is still one of the largest employers in El Reno. In 2015 President

Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II ( ; born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, Obama was the first African-American president of the ...

visited the prison, the first time a sitting president has visited any federal prison. During World War II, Fort Reno, about northwest of El Reno, was the site of a

prisoner of war A prisoner of war (POW) is a person who is held captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610. Belligerents hold prisoners of w ...

camp for Germans and Italians. The POW cemetery has been preserved and has stones bearing the names of German and Italian prisoners who died there. Following World War II, the US Army determined it did not need the fort. In 1948 the fort was transferred to the

U.S. Department of Agriculture The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) is the federal executive department responsible for developing and executing federal laws related to farming, forestry, rural economic development, and food. It aims to meet the needs of comme ...

, for use as a

research laboratory A research institute, research centre, research center or research organization, is an establishment founded for doing research. Research institutes may specialize in basic research or may be oriented to applied research. Although the term often im ...

. The laboratory studies environmentally sustainable

forage Forage is a plant material (mainly plant leaves and stems) eaten by grazing livestock. Historically, the term ''forage'' has meant only plants eaten by the animals directly as pasture, crop residue, or immature cereal crops, but it is also used ...

and

livestock Livestock are the domesticated animals raised in an agricultural setting to provide labor and produce diversified products for consumption such as meat, eggs, milk, fur, leather, and wool. The term is sometimes used to refer solely to animal ...

production, contributing to preservation of the Great Plains of North America. At one time, railroads contributed strongly to the city economy. A terminal and repair facility for the

Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad The Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad (CRI&P RW, sometimes called ''Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railway'') was an American Class I railroad. It was also known as the Rock Island Line, or, in its final years, The Rock. At the end ...

(CRI&P or "Rock Island"), which employed a large number of people, was based here. Some 750 of the company's 970 employees in the state worked in El Reno. Due to changes taking place throughout the railroad industry, the CRI&P went bankrupt in 1979. It abandoned the depot and

railyard A rail yard, railway yard, railroad yard (US) or simply yard, is a series of tracks in a rail network for storing, sorting, or loading and unloading rail vehicles and locomotives. Yards have many tracks in parallel for keeping rolling stock or ...

s in 1980. The railyards are still vacant. The former

train depot A train station, railway station, railroad station or depot is a railway facility where trains stop to load or unload passengers, freight or both. It generally consists of at least one platform, one track and a station building providing su ...

and some other buildings were acquired by the Canadian County Historical Society for adaptive use as part of a museum complex. The 1954 film noir ''

Human Desire ''Human Desire'' is a 1954 American film noir drama film directed by Fritz Lang and starring Glenn Ford, Gloria Grahame and Broderick Crawford. It is loosely based on Émile Zola's 1890 novel ''La Bête humaine''. The story had been filmed twice ...

'' includes locomotive and yard scenes filmed in the El Reno rail yards. El Reno is a Main Street America community. The Oklahoma Main Street Program is a statewide program, part of a national network affiliated with the National Trust for Historic Preservation. It emphasizes downtown revitalization related to public-private partnerships, with investment in public spaces and design, and overall management of retail mix. The El Reno started its Main Street program in 1988; it was one of four cities in 2006 selected nationally to win the annual Great American Main Street Award. El Reno has used economic development, historic preservation, and creative design to enhance the Rock District of downtown. Its high standards are reflected in having been accredited annually since 2016. Since 1988 El Reno holds an annual Fried Onion Burger Day Festival in downtown the first Saturday in May. This event encourages the celebration of art, music, culture, food and community. Visitors can observe the cooking of the world's largest fried onion

hamburger A hamburger, or simply burger, is a food consisting of fillings—usually a patty of ground meat, typically beef—placed inside a sliced bun or bread roll. Hamburgers are often served with cheese, lettuce, tomato, onion, pickles, bacon, ...

, weighing over . The giant burger contains meat, fried onions, sliced pickles, and mustard - all held between two giant buns. Festival goers can get a piece of the monstrosity. Volunteers divide the giant burger into individual-sized portions, and other volunteers deliver the free portions to anyone in the crowd wanting a piece. The fried onion burger dates to the Great Depression, when households added onions to ground hamburger mix to stretch out the meat supply. In 2001, El Reno was the first city in Oklahoma to re-establish

streetcar A tram (called a streetcar or trolley in North America) is a rail vehicle that travels on tramway tracks on public urban streets; some include segments on segregated right-of-way. The tramlines or networks operated as public transport a ...

service in the downtown area: the Heritage Express Trolley. Such service had not been available since 1947, and it was the only operating trolley line in the state that year. Another line has since been started in

Oklahoma City Oklahoma City (), officially the City of Oklahoma City, and often shortened to OKC, is the capital and largest city of the U.S. state of Oklahoma. The county seat of Oklahoma County, it ranks 20th among United States cities in population, a ...

. The Heritage Express was installed with aid of a federal transportation grant and as part of a complex project also to improve the downtown's streets and drainage system. On June 15, 2015, Sid's Diner was featured on the

Food Network Food Network is an American basic cable channel owned by Television Food Network, G.P., a joint venture and general partnership between Warner Bros. Discovery Networks (which holds a 69% ownership stake of the network) and Nexstar Media Group ( ...

series '' Top 5 Restaurants'', with their fried-onion burger being highlighted. Sid's Diner has also been featured on the

Travel Channel Travel Channel (stylized as Trvl Channel since 2018) is an American pay television channel owned by Warner Bros. Discovery, which had previously owned the channel from 1997 to 2007. The channel is headquartered in New York, New York, United S ...

series '' Man v. Food''.

21st century tornadoes

On May 24, 2011, an EF5 tornado struck parts of northwestern El Reno. The tornado killed a total of 9 people and injured 181 others, and had winds measured at up to 295 mph by mobile doppler radar near

Interstate 40 Interstate 40 (I-40) is a major east–west Interstate Highway running through the south-central portion of the United States. At a length of , it is the third-longest Interstate Highway in the country, after I-90 and I-80. From west to ea ...

. Two years later, on May 31, 2013, El Reno was hit by a

multiple-vortex tornado A multiple-vortex tornado is a tornado that contains several vortices (called subvortices or suction vortices) revolving around, ''inside'' of, and as part of the main vortex. The only times multiple vortices may be visible are when the tornado i ...

. The tornado set a record with a width of .

The Weather Channel The Weather Channel (TWC) is an American pay television channel owned by Weather Group, LLC, a subsidiary of Allen Media Group. The channel's headquarters are in Atlanta, Georgia. Launched on May 2, 1982, the channel broadcasts weather foreca ...

Mike Bettes Michael Bettes (born January 9, 1972) is an American television meteorologist and storm chaser who works for The Weather Channel in Atlanta, Georgia. He was a co-host of '' AMHQ: America's Morning Headquarters''. He hosts Weather Underground TV ...

was hit by this storm, but survived it. Storm chaser

Tim Samaras Timothy Michael Samaras (November 12, 1957 – May 31, 2013) was an American engineer and storm chaser best known for his field research on tornadoes and time on the Discovery Channel show, '' Storm Chasers''. He died in the 2013 El Reno ...

, his son Paul, and his

TWISTEX TWISTEX (a backronym for Tactical Weather-Instrumented Sampling in/near Tornadoes Experiment) was a tornado research experiment that was founded and led by Tim Samaras of Bennett, Colorado, US, that ended in the deaths of three researchers in ...

colleague Carl Young died in the storm near the Regional Airport. Paul Samaras and Young were pulled from their

Chevrolet Cobalt The Chevrolet Cobalt is a compact car introduced by Chevrolet in 2004 for the 2005 model year. The Cobalt replaced both the Cavalier and the Toyota-based Geo/Chevrolet Prizm as Chevrolet's compact car. The Cobalt was available as both a coupe ...

by the tornado's subvortex. Tim Samaras was found still buckled in the passenger's seat of the car, next to where Young had been driving. Local amateur chaser Richard Henderson died in that same area. Before being struck, Henderson took a picture of the tornado from his

mobile phone A mobile phone, cellular phone, cell phone, cellphone, handphone, hand phone or pocket phone, sometimes shortened to simply mobile, cell, or just phone, is a portable telephone that can make and receive calls over a radio frequency link whi ...

and sent it to a friend. Dan Robinson of

St. Louis, Missouri St. Louis () is the second-largest city in Missouri, United States. It sits near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a population of 301,578, while the bi-state metropolitan area, which e ...

survived the tornado with few injuries. He was a few hundred meters ahead of the TWISTEX crew. An EF3 tornado struck southern parts of El Reno on May 25, 2019. Touching down at 10:32 pm, the tornado damaged a service station before moving east-northeastward and crossing Interstate 40. It damaged billboards before striking a motel and a mobile home park at U.S. Highway 81, both of which suffered significant damage. One part of the motel had most of its second-floor walls destroyed, and several mobile homes were destroyed, killing two people and injuring many others. East of Highway 81, the tornado damaged an automobile service building and a house on Route 66. The tornado caused tree damage before dissipating on Alfadale Road north of Route 66. The tornado had a maximum estimated width of and injured 19 people.

Geography

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 t ...

, the city has a total area of , of which are land and (0.56%) is. El Reno is located at the interchange of

I-40 Interstate 40 (I-40) is a major east–west Interstate Highway running through the south-central portion of the United States. At a length of , it is the third-longest Interstate Highway in the country, after I-90 and I-80. From west to ea ...

and U.S. Route 81. At one time, it sat on the boundary between Oklahoma Territory and

Indian Territory The Indian Territory and the Indian Territories are terms that generally described an evolving land area set aside by the United States Government for the relocation of Native Americans who held aboriginal title to their land as a sovereign ...

, and sits approximately west of the old Chisholm Trail.

Jesse Chisholm Jesse Chisholm (''circa ''1805 - March 4, 1868) (Cherokee) was a Cherokee fur trader and merchant in the American West. He is known for having scouted and developed what became known as the Chisholm Trail, later used to drive cattle from Texas to ...

is buried nearby. In 1952, a magnitude 5.5

earthquake An earthquake (also known as a quake, tremor or temblor) is the shaking of the surface of the Earth resulting from a sudden release of energy in the Earth's lithosphere that creates seismic waves. Earthquakes can range in intensity, fr ...

struck near El Reno, causing damage to several buildings in the city. It is currently Oklahoma's third-strongest earthquake on record, and it was the strongest earthquake in Oklahoma history prior to the November 5, 2011 earthquake near Sparks.

Climate

El Reno has endured numerous weather-related incidents in recent years: * On January 30, 2002, El Reno was hit by a severe ice storm that left most of the city without power for several days and caused thousands of dollars of damage in downed trees and powerlines. The storm brought around two inches of ice, with as much as 6 inches over the following days. All of Canadian County was designated as a Federal Disaster Area. * During the May 3, 1999 tornado outbreak, El Reno suffered damage from one of the many tornadoes that formed from the same storm that produced the infamous F5 tornado that day. Parts of Redlands Community College were damaged. * El Reno has weathered several ice storms in recent years, including the January 4–5, 2005, storm that left up to two inches of ice in the hardest-hit locations. * In 2006, El Reno experienced "exceptional" drought conditions, as the entire state endured one of the driest summers on record. * On March 12, 2006, drought conditions allowed an area wildfire to grow to burn over 1000 acres (4 km). Winds carried the smoke into the Oklahoma City metro area, spurring thousands of calls to emergency services by concerned residents. * On April 24, 2006, a rare anticyclonic

tornado A tornado is a violently rotating column of air that is in contact with both the surface of the Earth and a cumulonimbus cloud or, in rare cases, the base of a cumulus cloud. It is often referred to as a twister, whirlwind or cyclone, altho ...

hit El Reno's municipal airport, causing damage to the hangars and small airplanes. * On the night of May 8, 2007, a tornado ripped through the south and east sides of the city. At least one injury occurred when the tornado knocked over a truck and semitrailer on I-40. * Overnight on August 19, 2007, Tropical Storm Erin dumped over of rain on El Reno and the surrounding area. This caused extensive flooding. * On May 24, 2011, a violent long-track tornado passed through the El Reno area, causing extensive damage and killing nine people. The tornado was given an EF5 rating after reviewing the damage. * On May 31, 2013, the

2013 El Reno tornado During the early evening of Friday, May 31, 2013, a very large and powerful tornado occurred over rural areas of Central Oklahoma. This rain-wrapped, multiple-vortex tornado was the widest tornado ever recorded and was part of a larger weath ...

, the widest tornado ever documented, hit El Reno. The tornado was an estimated 2.6 miles in width and had a recorded wind speed of >301 mph, one of the two highest wind speeds on record along with winds observed in the 1999 Bridge Creek–Moore tornado. It hit the outskirts of the city, prompting a

tornado emergency A tornado emergency is an enhanced version of a tornado warning, which is used by the National Weather Service (NWS) in the United States during imminent, significant tornado occurrences in highly populated areas. Although it is not a new warning ...

for El Reno and surrounding cities. The tornado killed eight people, including three

storm chasers ''Storm Chasers'' is an American documentary reality television series that premiered on October 17, 2007, on the Discovery Channel. Produced by Original Media, the program follows several teams of storm chasers as they attempt to intercept ...

. *On May 25, 2019, a tornado that has been rated at EF3 struck around 10:28 pm. It struck a mobile home park and a motel, killing two people. *From February 13-17, 2021,

Winter Storm Uri Winter is the coldest season of the year in polar and temperate climates. It occurs after autumn and before spring. The tilt of Earth's axis causes seasons; winter occurs when a hemisphere is oriented away from the Sun. Different cultures ...

caused extensive damage to El Reno and surrounding areas, leaving thousands of people without power. The air temperature was lower than 0° Fahrenheit for the duration of the storm. It also dumped more than 2 feet of snow on El Reno and surrounding areas.

Demographics

El Reno is part of the Oklahoma City Metropolitan Statistical Area. As of the census of 2010, 16,749 people, 5,727 households, and 3,842 families resided in the city. The population density was 202.7 people per square mile (78.3/km). The 6,484 housing units averaged 81.1 per square mile (31.3/km). The

racial makeup A race is a categorization of humans based on shared physical or social qualities into groups generally viewed as distinct within a given society. The term came into common usage during the 1500s, when it was used to refer to groups of variou ...

of the city was 71.8% White, 11.1% Native American, 7.2% African American, 0.5% Asian, 4.7% from other races, and 4.7% from two or more races. Hispanics or Latinos of any race were 12.9% of the population. Of the 5,727 households, which 31.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.0% were married couples living together, 12.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 32.9% were not families. About 28.5% of all households were made up of individuals, and 12.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.50 and the average family size was 3.08. In the city, the population was distributed as 24.2% under the age of 18, 10.5% from 18 to 24, 30.8% from 25 to 44, 21.1% from 45 to 64, and 13.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females, there were 114.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 119.5 males. The median income for a household in the city was $31,200, and for a family was $39,106. Males had a median income of $29,521 versus $20,107 for females. The per capita income for the city was $15,570. About 11.4% of families and 16.3% 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 t ...

, including 19.6% of those under age 18 and 10.4% of those age 65 or over.

Government and infrastructure

The City of El Reno operates under a council-manager government system. City employees include the city manager, finance director, police chief, fire chief, city clerk, public works director, code enforcement director, community services director, and city librarian. The

Federal Bureau of Prisons The Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) is a United States federal law enforcement agency under the Department of Justice that is responsible for the care, custody, and control of incarcerated individuals who have committed federal crimes; that i ...

operates the

Transportation

El Reno is served by

US Route 81 U.S. Route 81 or U.S. Highway 81 (US 81) is a major north–south U.S. highway that extends for in the central United States and is one of the original United States Numbered Highways established in 1926 by the American Association of Sta ...

, US Route 270 (just west of town), and

Oklahoma State Highway 66 State Highway 66 (abbreviated SH-66) is a state highway in the U.S. state of Oklahoma, beginning at U.S. Highway 81 in El Reno and ending at U.S. Highway 60 near White Oak. The highway was designated in 1985 as a replacement for the decom ...

Intercity bus service An intercity bus service (North American English) or intercity coach service (British English and Commonwealth English), also called a long-distance, express, over-the-road, commercial, long-haul, or highway bus or coach service, is a public tr ...

is provided by Greyhound Lines. El Reno Regional Airport (KRQO; FAA ID: RQO), four miles southwest, has a 5600’ x 75’ paved runway. Commercial air transportation is available at

Will Rogers World Airport Will Rogers World Airport , Will Rogers Airport or simply Will Rogers, is a passenger airport located in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, United States, about 6 miles (10 km) southwest of the city's downtown area. It is a civil-military airport ...

, about 29 miles southeast. El Reno is on the route of the AT&L Railroad, which has branches running to Watonga and

Bridgeport Bridgeport is the most populous city and a major port in the U.S. state of Connecticut. With a population of 148,654 in 2020, it is also the fifth-most populous in New England. Located in eastern Fairfield County at the mouth of the Pequonnoc ...

through

Geary, Oklahoma Geary is a city in Blaine and Canadian counties in the U.S. state of Oklahoma. The population was 1,280 at the 2010 census. The town was named for Edmund Guerrier, a scout and an interpreter for the U.S. Army.

, with overhead trackage rights on

Union Pacific The Union Pacific Railroad , legally Union Pacific Railroad Company and often called simply Union Pacific, is a freight-hauling railroad that operates 8,300 locomotives over routes in 23 U.S. states west of Chicago and New Orleans. Union Pac ...

. Traffic includes grain, fertilizer and agriculture-related products. The town is also directly on Union Pacific's rail line, and the railroad honors El Reno as a “Train Town USA,” one of 131 communities out of 7,300 communities it serves, because of the town’s unique, long-standing relationship with the line.

Education

* Canadian Valley Technology Center is on famed Route 66 about 3 mi (5 km) east of the city. *

Redlands Community College Redlands Community College (Redlands) is a public community college in El Reno, Oklahoma. Student enrollment is approximately 2,200 per semester. History In 1938, El Reno Junior College, was established by an act of the El Reno Board of Educatio ...

opened in 1971.

Media

The ''El Reno Tribune'' publishes Wednesday and Sunday and has a circulation around 5,000. For many years the filmmaker

George Kuchar George Kuchar (August 31, 1942 – September 6, 2011) was an American underground film director and video artist, known for his "low-fi" aesthetic. Early life and career Kuchar trained as a commercial artist at the School of Industrial Art, now k ...

would drive to El Reno to document the storm season, staying at the El Reno Motel. The Result was his film Wild Night in El Reno. Parts of the film American Underdog were filmed in El Reno.

Notable people

* Charles Cannon (1915–1997), the

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2020, it is the second-largest U.S. state by ...

saddle The saddle is a supportive structure for a rider of an animal, fastened to an animal's back by a girth. The most common type is equestrian. However, specialized saddles have been created for oxen, camels and other animals. It is not k ...

maker, broke horses for the U.S. government in El Reno during World War II. * Harlond Clift (1912-1992), Major League Baseball infielder * Suzan Shown Harjo (1945-), advocate for American Indian rights * Solomon Andrew Layton (1864-1943), architect, was born in Iowa, but moved to El Reno in 1902, then to Oklahoma City in 1911. *

Sam Pittman Sam Pittman (born November 28, 1961) is an American football coach who is the head football coach at the University of Arkansas. Prior to being hired at Arkansas, he was the associate head coach and offensive line coach at the University of Georg ...

(1961-), Head Football Coach Arkansas Razorbacks * Harvey Pratt (1941-), Native American forensic artist *

Hub Reed Hubert F. "Hub" Reed (born October 4, 1936) is a retired American professional basketball player born in Harrah, Oklahoma. A 6'9" center from Oklahoma City University under famous coach Abe Lemons, Reed played in the National Basketball Associat ...

(1936-), pro basketball player (

St. Louis Hawks The Atlanta Hawks are an American professional basketball team based in Atlanta. The Hawks compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Southeast Division. The team plays its home games at ...

Cincinnati Royals The Sacramento Kings are an American professional basketball team based in Sacramento, California. The Kings compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Western Conference Pacific Division. The Kings are the oldest ...

, Los Angeles Lakers, and

Detroit Pistons The Detroit Pistons are an American professional basketball team based in Detroit. The Pistons compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Central Division and play their home games at L ...

) * Erik Rhodes (1906-1990), Broadway and Hollywood actor * Sam Rivers (1923-2011), jazz musician and composer * Kenzie Ruston (1991-),

NASCAR The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, LLC (NASCAR) is an American auto racing sanctioning and operating company that is best known for stock car racing. The privately owned company was founded by Bill France Sr. in 1948, and ...

driver in the

K&N Pro Series East The ARCA Menards Series East (formerly Busch East Series, Busch North Series, Camping World East Series, and NASCAR K&N Pro Series East) is a regional stock car racing series owned and operated by the Automobile Racing Club of America (ARCA) and ...

* Gaylord Shaw (1942-),

1978 Pulitzer Prize The following are the Pulitzer Prizes for 1978. Journalism awards *Public Service: **''The Philadelphia Inquirer'', for a series of articles showing abuses of power by the police in its home city. * Local General or Spot News Reporting: ** Richa ...

–winning journalist, managing editor of '' Dallas Times Herald'' and ''

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the U ...

'' *

Robert Stanley (aviator) Robert Morris Stanley (August 19, 1912 – July 16, 1977) was an American test pilot and engineer. He became the first American to fly a jet aircraft as a test pilot for Bell Aircraft. Early life Robert Morris Stanley was born in El Reno, O ...

(1912-1977), test pilot

References

External links

City of El Reno
*
El Reno Tribune
'

"El Reno", Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture
{{Authority control Oklahoma City metropolitan area Cities in Canadian County, Oklahoma Cities in Oklahoma County seats in Oklahoma