Redding

Town and administrative headquarters of Shasta County, north California; population (1990) 66,500. It is situated on the Sacramento River, at the north end of the Sacramento Valley, 105 km/65 mi north-northwest of Chico. It is the largest California city north of Sacramento. Commerce, lumbering, and tourism are central to its economy. It is headquarters for the Shasta-Trinity National Forest, and is also the gateway to recreational and wilderness areas across northern California, in the Klamath and Cascade ranges. Simpson (1921) and Shasta (1948) colleges are in the town. Shasta, a mining ghost town, is 8 km/5 mi to the west.

Redding

Town in Fairfield County, southwest Connecticut; population (1990) 7,900. It is situated on the Saugatuck River, 21 km/13 mi northwest of Bridgeport. Formerly agricultural, it is now a residential exurb. Its library was a gift from Mark Twain, one of many writers and performers who have made summer or year-round homes here. Putnam Memorial Campground marks General Israel Putnam's campground during the winter of 1778-79.