When the railroad came to Bend in 1911, the possibilities for the new city felt endless. The city of about 500 residents developed an irrigation system for growing crops, and the railroad would allow those crops to be sold across the Northwest.

In 1912, a group formed to promote the good fortune of the city.

The Bend Emblem Club, part chamber of commerce and part fraternity, designed the official circular emblem for the city, “BEND,” that is still used today. The group swore an oath to wear the emblem every day until the city reached a population of 100,000, which the group expected would occur by 1937.

“They were a fun bunch, and they were motivated,” said Kelly Cannon Miller, director of the Deschutes Historical Museum. “They thought they had all the pieces that they needed to make it happen.”

The massive expansion to 100,000 residents never happened as fast as they imagined, but their dream was finally realized last month.

A report in May from the U.S. Census Bureau confirmed Bend exceeded 100,000 in July 2019. Bend’s estimated population last year was 100,421 after adding 2,831 residents from 2018, according to the census bureau.

The Emblem Club pinpointed the 100,000 population because it thought Bend would be on the same path as Spokane, Washington. The railroad came to Spokane in 1892, turning the city into an agricultural hub for Eastern Washington. Over the next 18 years, Spokane’s population grew from about 19,000 to 104,000 in 1910.

“That was their model,” Cannon-Miller said. “The railroad and irrigation are here. People can start farms and ranches, and it will blossom.”

But the Emblem Club faced several unforeseen challenges. The potential for a booming economy and population stalled during World War I and through the Great Depression.

Bend also had setbacks with expanding it’s irrigation systems, and homesteaders left due to the failure of dry land farming in parts of the High Desert.

“The combination of all of those factors meant they weren’t going to make 100,000 people by 1937,” Cannon-Miller said.

William Cheney, an early Bend developer and founder of the Emblem Club, also faced financial difficulties after he invested his personal fortune into the club.

Cheney, who made his money in the oil industry in Oklahoma, bought the Drake Lodge, the former home of Bend founders Alexander and Florence Drake. He would host elaborate parties at the lodge and invited businessmen from Seattle and Portland.

Members of the club, mostly businessmen and elected leaders in Bend, were known for their comradery and playfulness.

They would prank the visiting guests by dressing up like thieves and robbing the incoming train before it reached Bend, Cannon-Miller said.

“They would rob everybody, and then give them their stuff back when they got to Bend,” Cannon-Miller said.

The eventful visits to Bend left a positive impression on the groups from Seattle and Portland.

Members of the Portland Ad Club gave a glowing review of Bend and the Emblem Club in a Sept. 13, 1914, article in The Oregon Journal, Portland’s former afternoon newspaper.

“From the moment the sun and Emblem Club together welcomed the visitors, the town was delivered to the most all-inclusive hospitality the Ad men had ever experienced,” the article read.

In addition to lavish parties, Cheney spent money on brochures, personalized stationary and leather-bound rulebooks for the club. The club also shared a song book, “Songs and Nonsense Rhymes of The Emblem Club.”

One verse in the song book was for the Portland Ad Club, and read, “Ad Club, Ad Club we’ve been thinking what a fine world this would be if only Ad Clubs did all drinking and rye whiskey filled the sea.”

Cannon-Miller said all the spending finally caught up with Cheney.

“He spared no expense. All of that came from his personal wealth,” Cannon-Miller said. “The sad part is by 1918, he’s out of money and has to leave town to go back to the oil industry.”

Cheney is often forgotten in Bend history since he was only in town a short time, but he is credited with designing the “BEND” circle logo that is now public domain and still used to promote the city.

Cheney and the other members of the Emblem Club would probably be pleased to know the city finally reached its goal of 100,000 residents, Cannon-Miller said.

“That was what they swore to uphold,” she said. “It was all about building a successful city and an economically vibrant place to bring industry.”