Orem

History

At one time the area was known as Sharon, a Biblical name for a mostly level strip of land running between mountains and the sea, and the name of the Vermont birth town of Joseph Smith, founder of the Latter Day Saint movement. Another former name was Provo Bench, Unlike many other early Utah communities, Orem's houses were not originally clustered in a town composed of regular city blocks. Instead, Orem's farmers dispersed their homes, building them along the territorial highway (now called State Street) and other major roads so that they could be close to both transportation corridors and to their fields and orchards. In an apparent attempt to attract more investment to the town and provide an easy way for the large population of farmers with orchards to ship produce, in 1914 it was named after Walter C. Orem, President of the Salt Lake and Utah Railroad in the early 1900s. Orem was incorporated on May 5, 1919. He was brought to Timpanogos Regional Hospital, where he was pronounced dead at 2:40 PM MDT (UTC-7:00).

Geography

Orem is in a low desert, with an average elevation of . According to the United States Census Bureau, the city covers an area of , all land. Orem is near the eastern shore of Utah Lake, bordering Provo on the east and south, Vineyard to the west, Lindon contiguous to the north, and Mount Timpanogos/Wasatch Mountain range to the east.

Race & ethnicity

Most-observed species

• Mallard

  Anas platyrhynchos Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  18,498
• American Robin

  Turdus migratorius Linnaeus, 1766 · Aves
  18,136
• European Starling

  Sturnus vulgaris Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  14,654
• Song Sparrow

  Melospiza melodia (A.Wilson, 1810) · Aves
  13,572
• House Finch

  Haemorhous mexicanus (P.L.Statius Müller, 1776) · Aves
  12,937
• Black-billed Magpie

  Pica hudsonia (Sabine, 1823) · Aves
  11,843
• Red-winged Blackbird

  Agelaius phoeniceus (Linnaeus, 1766) · Aves
  11,655
• Black-capped Chickadee

  Poecile atricapillus (Linnaeus, 1766) · Aves
  11,654

Largest nearby schools

• Lone Peak High
  High · HIGHLAND · 2,469 students · 28.1:1 ratio
• American Fork High
  High · AMERICAN FORK · 2,412 students · 27.1:1 ratio
• Timpview High
  High · PROVO · 2,341 students · 23.6:1 ratio
• Pleasant Grove High
  High · PLEASANT GROVE · 2,084 students · 26.4:1 ratio
• Provo High
  High · PROVO · 1,988 students · 24.9:1 ratio
• Lehi High
  High · LEHI · 1,982 students · 29.1:1 ratio
• American Fork Jr High
  Middle · AMERICAN FORK · 1,894 students · 28.3:1 ratio
• Mountain View High
  High · OREM · 1,508 students · 24.3:1 ratio

Most recent

• M 2.86 — 2026-08-07
  6 km NNW of Saratoga Springs, Utah
• M 2.81 — 2026-02-22
  7 km SW of Clear Creek, Utah
• M 3.52 — 2026-02-14
  4 km NNW of West Valley City, Utah
• M 3.5 — 2026-02-05
  6 km WNW of Lehi, Utah
• M 2.71 — 2026-02-05
  41 km ENE of Oakley, Utah
• M 2.97 — 2026-01-22
  41 km SSE of Evanston, Wyoming