As President of the United States, William McKinley visited this city on May 8, 1901, and here the Governor of California tendered him the freedom of the state. The citizens of Redlands erected a memorial as a tribute to McKinley and as a record of the event. It was unveiled on May 7, 1903, on the occasion of the visit of Theodore Roosevelt, President of the U.S., and was dedicated on Memorial Day under the auspices of Bear Valley Post 162, G.A.R.