Butte County, California
Historic newspapers, landmarks, and county history layers for genealogists and local historians.
At a glance
SummaryThe National Register of Historic Places includes 28 listed properties in the county, first listed in 1972. Most listings are in or near Chico, Oroville, Paradise.
Summary generated automatically from the source data on this page.
Newspapers
Library of CongressNewspaper directory data for California is not yet loaded on this site. Browse Butte titles at the Library of Congress.
National Register of Historic Places
NPS NRHP20 of 28 listings mapped; some locations are restricted by NPS to protect sensitive sites.
28 listed properties
| Property | City | Listed |
|---|---|---|
| Allen-Sommer-Gage House | Chico | 1977 |
| Bidwell Mansion | Chico | 1972 |
| Centerville Schoolhouse | Paradise | 1972 |
| Chapman, A. H., House | Chico | 1982 |
| Durham, W. W., House | Durham | 1992 |
| Forks of Butte | Paradise | 2004 |
| Hazel Hotel | Gridley | 2001 |
| Honey Run Covered Bridge | Chico | 1988 |
| Inskip Hotel | Stirling City | 1975 |
| Lee, Fong, Company | Oroville | 1982 |
| Magalia Community Church | Magalia | 1982 |
| Mountain House Historic District | Mountain House | 2019 |
| Mud Creek Canyon | Chico | 1973 |
| Oroville Carnegie Library | Oroville | 2007 |
| Oroville Chinese Temple | Oroville | 1976 |
| Oroville Commercial District (old) | Oroville | 1983 |
| Oroville Inn | Oroville | 1990 |
| Patrick Ranch House | Chico | 1972 |
| Patrick Rancheria | Chico | 1972 |
| Pence Hotel and Post Office | Oroville | 2026 |
| Silberstein Park Building | Chico | 1983 |
| South of Campus Neighborhood | Chico | 1991 |
| Southern Pacific Depot | Chico | 1987 |
| St. John's Episcopal Church | Chico | 1982 |
| Stansbury House | Chico | 1975 |
| State Theatre | Oroville | 1991 |
| US Post Office-Chico Midtown Station | Chico | 1985 |
| US Post Office-Oroville Main | Oroville | 1985 |
Source: National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Property links open NRHP nomination files at the National Archives.
County formation
Newberry AHCBButte was formed in 1850 (1850-02-18) from unknown / original county.
BUTTE created from non-county area.
Source: Newberry Library, Atlas of Historical County Boundaries.
Population by decade
CensusButte County population from 1850 to 2020 (Census historical series).
| 1850 | 1860 | 1880 | 1900 | 1920 | 1940 | 1950 | 1960 | 1980 | 2000 | 2020 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3,574 | 12,106 | 18,721 | 17,117 | 30,030 | 42,840 | 64,930 | 82,030 | 143,851 | 203,171 | 211,632 |
Sources: U.S. Census Bureau historical county population (Forstall 1790–1990) and public-domain / CC0 county population series through 2020.
Cemeteries & historical places
USGS GNIS39 cemeteries and 35 historical populated places (ghost towns / former settlements) recorded in USGS GNIS for this county.
Cemeteries — 39 of 39 listed
| Name |
|---|
| Bangor Cemetery |
| Butte County Cemetery |
| Centerville Cemetery |
| Cherokee Town Cemetery |
| Chico Cemetery |
| Clark Cemetery |
| Clear Creek Cemetery |
| Cohasset Cemetery |
| Coutolenc Cemetery |
| Dayton Cemetery |
| Durham Cemetery |
| Forbestown Cemetery |
| Forest Ranch Cemetery |
| Glen Oaks Memorial Park |
| Gridley - Biggs Cemetery |
| Honcut Cemetery |
| Indian Cemetery |
| Inskip Pioneer Cemetery |
| Kimshew Magalia Cemetery |
| Lake Madrone Cemetery |
| Mechoopda Tribal Cemetery |
| Memorial Park Cemetery |
| Mooretown Cemetery |
| Nelson Cemetery |
| Nicholl Cemetery |
| Nimshew Cemetery |
| Oak Grove Cemetery |
| Old Hamilton Cemetery |
| Oregon City Cemetery |
| Oroville Cemetery |
| Paradise Cemetery |
| Patrick Cemetery |
| Pine Creek Cemetery |
| Pioneer Cemetery |
| Stirling City Cemetery |
| Thompson Flat Cemetery |
| Toadtown Grave |
| Upham Cemetery |
| Yankee Hill Cemetery |
Historical populated places — 35 of 35
| Name |
|---|
| Bidwell |
| Bidwell Bar |
| Big Ripples |
| Blinzing |
| Bloomer |
| Brush |
| Chandon |
| Craig |
| David |
| Enterprise |
| Eskini |
| Flea Valley |
| Gold Lake |
| Gridley Colony Number One |
| Gridley Colony Number Two |
| Haselbusch |
| Hawk Ravine |
| Hume |
| Isaiah |
| Land |
| Las Plumas |
| Lava Beds |
| Lorraine |
| Michopdo |
| Moseley |
| Nelson Bar |
| New Blinzing |
| Pipers |
| Quartz |
| Richland |
| Soto |
| South Fork |
| Swedes Flat |
| Wagners |
| Yuman |
Source: USGS Geographic Names Information System (public domain). Cemeteries from the 2021 NationalFile archive; historical places from GNIS HistoricalFeatures topical extract.
Historical markers
HMdb linkMarker text and photos from the Historical Marker Database (HMdb) are not embedded here. HMdb allows non-commercial reuse with attribution, but commercial/compensated use needs written permission; this is a commercial site, so we only link out.
Search HMdb for Butte County, California
Terms: hmdb.org/copyright.asp. Linking is encouraged by HMdb.