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- Conrad & Anna Olsen Farmstead
Now known as Conrad Olsen Park, this property was part of Conrad and Anna Olsen’s farm established in 1905. The park is a reminder of the city’s rural heritage and is part of the East Redmond Corridor Master Plan.
The farmstead is located near Bear Creek (a tributary of the Sammamish River) consisting of four buildings: a farmhouse, garage, shed, and a barn, and was built by Conrad Olsen and his wife Anna. Conrad Olsen was born in Norway and arrived in America in 1902. After multiple occupations that brought him to America, including gold mining in Alaska and logging, he finally settled in Redmond to work at the Peterson Sawmill.
After becoming very familiar with logging practices, Conrad decided to start his own logging business, supplying power poles to Puget Sound Power and Light. Logging was then considered one of the family’s main sources of income.
Farming was said to be Conrad and Anna’s secondary source of income. The farm buildings were constructed using lumber from local lumber mills and were considered multipurpose; used for storage, shelter, and workspace. The barn’s first floor was devoted to milking a small number of cows, and the second story was used for hay storage. The size of the farm as well as the number of cattle determined how much money the family was able to make from dairy.
The Conrad Olsen Farm operated from 1903 until Conrad’s death in 1970 and is one of the few such historic farms remaining in the Sammamish River Valley.
This farmstead represents an early economic activity in the Redmond area and is a reminder of the City’s rural heritage as well as one of the bases from which Redmond was formed.