[4] For statistical purposes, the Bureau of Economic Analysis combines the city of Radford with neighboring Montgomery County.

Despite its name, the Radford Arsenal, historically a major employer of city residents, is in neighboring Pulaski and Montgomery counties.

A large depot was placed at Lovely Mount because of its strategic positioning between the eastern and western parts of the state.

Thus the Radford Army Ammunition Plant, or the "Arsenal" as it would come to be called, joined the railroad and Lynchburg Foundry as major employers creating a huge influx in population.

The railroad ceased passenger service through Radford 1971 as personal transportation moved to the fairly new interstate highway system and the airways.

[6] Although a majority of Radford voters supported Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton and Joe Biden in the elections of 2008, 2012, 2016 and 2020, during the 2012 campaign the city was the site of the so-called Crumb and Get It bakery incident, in which a bakery owner declined to host a campaign event for then-Vice President Joe Biden, citing political differences.

[9] The house was built in 1870 in the 19th century Victorian style, specifically Second Empire, and serves as a home for many artifacts concerning the beginnings of Radford.

Glencoe Museum is a very popular attraction for school field trips and visitors who are trying to find out more about Radford.

Radford also has the historic antebellum period Glencoe Museum, a local farmer's market and one movie theater.

Riverview is used mainly for soccer practices, and like its name suggests is also located on the New River and in the west end of Radford.

It features three picnic shelters, a gazebo, tennis courts, and open fields mainly used for little league soccer.

[12] Wildwood Park is a 50-acre wooded ravine in the center of town, with a paved bikeway along a stream at the bottom of two forested hillsides crisscrossed by hiking trails.

The towns were joined with the bridging of Connelly's Run by the city's East and West Main Street.

A shallow stream, Connelly's Run, flows through the park and provides great crayfish hunting for children during the summer months.

The worst river flooding in Radford's recorded history occurred on August 14, 1940, with a slow-moving tropical depression.

The storm brought wind gusts of 44 mph to San Juan, Puerto Rico, as it moved northwestward.

Four days later on August 10 the S.S. Maine off the southeast coast measured hurricane-force winds and the storm began movement again toward the northwest.

The storm made landfall as a category 1 hurricane on August 11 at approximately 4 PM near Beaufort, South Carolina (along the SC/GA border).

The mountainous terrain coupled with extremely slow movement from the now tropical depression produced tremendous amounts of rain.

Residents in low-lying areas were forced to evacuate their homes and both the former Burlington Mills and the Lynchburg Foundry manufacturing plants were shut down because of high water.

The road leading from Radford into Pulaski County towards Claytor Lake Dam was inundated and impassable.

Thankfully, no deaths were reported across southwest Virginia, but several million dollars worth of damage occurred (1940 USD).

On October 18, 2011, a sign recognizing the historic flooding was dedicated in Bisset Park near downtown Radford.

The sign was donated by local resident Anthony Phillips, a hydrometeorologist from Snowville, Virginia, and installation was sponsored by the National Weather Service and the United States Geological Survey through the High Water Mark (HWM) Project.

[34] As reflected in the table below, Radford has leaned Democratic in presidential elections, but citizens have rarely given a candidate 60 percent of their vote.