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Butte County, California
—  County  —
County of Butte
Butte County, CA
Butte County in 2005, with a view of the Sutter Buttes in the background
Seal of Butte County, California
Seal
Logo of Butte County, California
Logo
Nickname(s): "The Land of Natural Wealth and Beauty"
[[File:Script error: No such module "Mapframe".|250px|none|alt=|Interactive map of Butte County]]Interactive map of Butte County
Map of California highlighting Butte County
Location in the state of California
Country United States
State California
Incorporated February 18, 1850[1]
Named for The nearby Sutter Buttes
County seat Oroville
Largest city Chico (population and area)
Area
 • Total 1,677 sq mi (4,340 km2)
 • Land 1,636 sq mi (4,240 km2)
 • Water 41 sq mi (110 km2)
Highest elevation[2] 7,124 ft (2,171 m)
Population (April 1, 2010)[3]
 • Total 220,000
 • Estimate (2019)[3] 219,186
 • Density 130/sq mi (51/km2)
Time zone Pacific Time Zone (UTC−8)
 • Summer (DST) Pacific Daylight Time (UTC−7)
Area code 530
FIPS code 06-007
GNIS feature ID 1675842
Website buttecounty.net

Butte County is a county in northern California. In the 2010 census, the population was 220,000.[4] The county seat is Oroville.[5]

Butte County comprises the Chico, CA Metropolitan Statistical Area. It is in the California Central Valley, north of the state capital of Sacramento. Butte County is known as the "Land of Natural Wealth and Beauty."

Butte County is drained by the Feather River and the Sacramento River. Butte Creek and Big Chico Creek are additional perennial streams, both tributary to the Sacramento. The county is the home of California State University, Chico and of Butte College.

There are four major hospitals and the State of California defines Butte County as being inside Health Service Area 1. A special district, the Butte County Air Quality Management District, regulates airborne pollutant emissions in the county. It does this following regional regulations, state, and federal laws. For example, in recent years, the agency changed rules that once allowed residents to burn household trash outdoors.

History[]

Butte County is named for the Sutter Buttes in neighboring Sutter County; butte means "small knoll" or "small hill" in French.[6] Butte County was incorporated as one of California's 19 original counties on February 18, 1850. The county went across the present limits of the Tehama, Plumas, Colusa, and Sutter counties.[7] The first sheriff was Joseph Q. Wilbur.[8]

Between November 8–25, 2018, a major wildfire, the Camp Fire, destroyed most of the town of Paradise, the adjacent community of Concow, and many square miles of rural, hilly country east of Chico. More than eighty people were killed, fifty thousand were displaced, over 150,000 acres were burned, and nearly twenty thousand buildings were destroyed.[9][10] The Camp Fire is California's most destructive and deadliest fire.[11]

Geography[]

South Table Mountain Butte County

South Table Mountain Near Oroville

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 1,677 square miles (4,340 km2), of which 1,636 square miles (4,240 km2) is land and 41 square miles (110 km2) (2.4%) is water.[4]

The county is drained by the Feather River and Butte Creek. Part of the county's western border is formed by the Sacramento River. The county lies along the western slope of the Sierra Nevada, the steep slopes making it prime territory for the siting of hydroelectric power plants. About a half dozen of these plants are located in the county, one of which, serves the Oroville Dam which became severely stressed by overflow water in 2017, and which remains a concern today.

National protected areas[]

  • Butte Sink National Wildlife Refuge (part)
  • Lassen National Forest (part)
  • Plumas National Forest (part)
  • Sacramento River National Wildlife Refuge (part)

Adjacent counties[]

Demographics[]

2011[]

Places by population, race, and income[]

2010[]

Historical populations
Census Pop.
1850 3,574
1860 12,106 238.7%
1870 11,403 −5.8%
1880 18,721 64.2%
1890 17,939 −4.2%
1900 17,117 −4.6%
1910 27,301 59.5%
1920 30,030 10.0%
1930 34,093 13.5%
1940 42,840 25.7%
1950 64,930 51.6%
1960 82,030 26.3%
1970 101,969 24.3%
1980 143,851 41.1%
1990 182,120 26.6%
2000 203,171 11.6%
2010 220,000 8.3%
Est. 2019 219,186 [3] 7.9%
U.S. Decennial Census[20]
1790–1960[21] 1900–1990[22]
1990–2000[23] 2010–2015[4]

The 2010 United States Census reported that Butte County had a population of 220,000. The racial makeup of Butte County was 180,096 (81.9%) White, 3,415 (1.6%) African American, 4,395 (2.0%) Native American, 9,057 (4.1%) Asian, 452 (0.2%) Pacific Islander, 12,141 (5.5%) from other races, and 10,444 (4.7%) from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 31,116 persons (14.1%).[24]

2000[]

As of the census[25] of 2000, there were 203,171 people, 79,566 households, and 49,410 families residing in the county. The population density was 124 people per square mile (48/km2). There were 85,523 housing units at an average density of 52 per square mile (20/km2). The racial makeup of the county was 84.5% White, 10.5% of the population were Hispanic or Latino, 3.3% Asian, 1.9% Native American, 1.4% Black or African American, 0.2% Pacific Islander, 4.8% from other races, and 3.9% from two or more races. 87.9% spoke English, 7.8% Spanish and 1.4% Hmong as their first language.

There were 79,566 households, out of which 28.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 46.7% were married couples living together, 11.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 37.9% were non-families. 27.2% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.48 and the average family size was 3.02.

In the county, the population was spread out, with 24.0% under the age of 18, 13.6% from 18 to 24, 24.8% from 25 to 44, 21.8% from 45 to 64, and 15.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females there were 96.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.6 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $31,924, and the median income for a family was $41,010. Males had a median income of $34,137 versus $25,393 for females. The per capita income for the county was $17,517. About 12.2% of families and 19.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 23.8% of those under age 18 and 7.3% of those age 65 or over.

Crime[]

The following table includes the number of incidents reported and the rate per 1,000 persons for each type of offense.

Cities by population and crime rates[]

Government[]

Voter registration statistics[]

Cities by population and voter registration[]

Local[]

The citizens of the county of Butte are represented by the five member Butte County Board of Supervisors.

Tribal[]

The Berry Creek Rancheria of Tyme Maidu Indians of California is headquartered in Oroville. The Berry Creek Rancheria operates Gold Country Casino.

The Mooretown Rancheria of Maidu Indians of California is also headquartered in Oroville. The Mooretown Rancheria operates Feather Falls Casino.

The governmental headquarters of the Mechoopda Indian Tribe of Chico Rancheria is located in Chico.

State[]

Butte County is split between the 1st and 3rd Assembly districts, represented by Republican   Brian Dahle and Republican   James Gallagher, respectively.[29] The county is in the 4th Senate District, represented by Republican   Jim Nielsen.[30]

According to the California Secretary of State, as of February 10, 2019, Butte County has 172,054 registered voters. Of those, 42,093 (34.4%) are registered Democrats, 41,330 (33.8%) are registered Republicans and 30,377 (24.8%) have declined to state a political party.[31]

On November 4, 2008, Butte County voted 56.7% for Proposition 8 which amended the California Constitution to ban same-sex marriages.[32]

Federal[]

Butte County is in California's 1st congressional district, represented by Republican   Doug LaMalfa.[33]

Butte is a Republican-leaning county in Presidential and congressional elections. Lyndon Johnson in 1964 is the last Democrat to win a majority in the county (It was also his weakest county victory in the state that year); however, Bill Clinton, Barack Obama, and Joe Biden won the county by plurality in 1992, 2008, and 2020, respectively.

Butte County is one of only twelve counties to have voted for Obama in 2008, Romney in 2012, Trump in 2016, and Biden in 2020.[lower-alpha 1]

United States presidential election results for Butte County, California[34]
Year Republican Democratic Third party
No.  % No.  % No.  %
2020 48,819 47.60% 50,815 49.54% 2,931 2.86%
2016 45,144 46.54% 41,567 42.85% 10,291 10.61%
2012 44,479 48.87% 42,669 46.88% 3,873 4.26%
2008 46,706 47.32% 49,013 49.66% 2,988 3.03%
2004 51,662 53.73% 42,448 44.14% 2,047 2.13%
2000 45,584 54.45% 31,338 37.43% 6,799 8.12%
1996 38,961 48.98% 30,651 38.53% 9,938 12.49%
1992 31,608 37.18% 32,489 38.22% 20,917 24.60%
1988 40,143 56.04% 30,406 42.45% 1,082 1.51%
1984 45,381 63.06% 25,421 35.32% 1,162 1.61%
1980 38,188 57.85% 19,520 29.57% 8,304 12.58%
1976 28,400 51.77% 24,203 44.12% 2,251 4.10%
1972 28,819 57.61% 18,401 36.78% 2,808 5.61%
1968 22,225 56.68% 12,887 32.87% 4,099 10.45%
1964 19,574 48.43% 20,831 51.54% 14 0.03%
1960 20,838 57.60% 15,163 41.92% 174 0.48%
1956 18,382 58.43% 12,933 41.11% 147 0.47%
1952 19,248 63.27% 10,913 35.87% 263 0.86%
1948 10,948 49.36% 10,133 45.68% 1,100 4.96%
1944 7,852 46.83% 8,811 52.55% 105 0.63%
1940 7,433 40.46% 10,684 58.15% 255 1.39%
1936 5,103 32.04% 10,490 65.86% 335 2.10%
1932 4,322 29.14% 9,645 65.03% 865 5.83%
1928 6,306 60.45% 3,946 37.83% 180 1.73%
1924 4,382 42.25% 1,299 12.52% 4,691 45.23%
1920 5,409 65.69% 2,262 27.47% 563 6.84%
1916 3,956 40.91% 4,888 50.55% 825 8.53%
1912 10 0.11% 4,028 45.66% 4,784 54.23%
1908 3,094 52.74% 2,146 36.58% 626 10.67%
1904 2,799 58.84% 1,574 33.09% 384 8.07%
1900 2,322 52.55% 2,011 45.51% 86 1.95%
1896 2,075 48.31% 2,120 49.36% 100 2.33%
1892 2,180 46.73% 2,141 45.89% 344 7.37%
1888 2,191 48.25% 2,215 48.78% 135 2.97%
1884 2,172 49.06% 2,118 47.84% 137 3.09%
1880 1,814 49.75% 1,832 50.25% 0 0.00%



Education[]

Public schools[]

There are roughly 90 public schools in the county according to the National Center for Educational Statistics. The schools are operated by the County Office of Education and 15 school districts, which are:

  • Bangor Union Elementary School District
  • Biggs Unified School District
  • Chico Unified School District
  • Durham Unified School District
  • Feather Falls Union Elementary School District
  • Golden Feather Union Elementary School District
  • Gridley Unified School District
  • Manzanita Elementary School District
  • Oroville City Elementary School District
  • Oroville Union High School District
  • Palermo Union School District
  • Paradise Unified School District
  • Pioneer Union Elementary School District
  • Thermalito Union School District

Colleges and universities[]

  • Butte College
  • California State University, Chico

Public libraries[]

Butte County Library provides library services to residents of the County through six branches in Biggs, Chico, Durham, Gridley, Oroville and Paradise. The mission of the Butte County Library is to provide all individuals, regardless of age, ethnic background, educational or economic level, with free access to ideas, information, and technology.

For many years, the library served rural and mountain communities through regularly scheduled bookmobile visits; however, due to budget cuts, this service was discontinued in 2009 and the bookmobile was sold. The library serves low-literacy adults through several programs of the Butte County Library Literacy Services division, including the Adult Reading Program, Families for Literacy and the Literacy Coach, a 36-foot (11 m) vehicle that provides mobile programming like story times, parent meetings, workshops, and computer and teacher trainings.

The library operates as a department of the County of Butte, governed by the Butte County Board of Supervisors.

Transportation[]

Bidwell Park Chico

Butte County is home to Bidwell Park in Chico, one of the largest municipal parks in the United States.

Major highways[]

  • California 32 State Route 32
  • California 70 State Route 70
  • California 99 State Route 99
  • California 149 State Route 149
  • California 162 State Route 162
  • California 191 State Route 191

Public transportation[]

Butte Regional Transit or the B-Line, provides service in and between Chico, Oroville, Paradise, Gridley and Biggs. Chico is also a connection point for Glenn Ride buses to Glenn County and Plumas Transit Systems buses to Plumas County.

Greyhound buses stop in Chico.

Amtrak's Coast Starlight (Los Angeles-Seattle) passenger train makes a stop daily in each direction in Chico's Chico station.

Airports[]

General Aviation airports in Butte County include:

  • Chico Municipal Airport
  • Oroville Municipal Airport
  • Paradise Airport
  • Ranchaero Airport
  • Richvale Airport

Communities[]

Bidwell Mansion 2006 11 IMGP0863

A photo of Bidwell Mansion in Chico.

Chico State's Kendall Hall

Kendall Hall, the administration building at California State University, Chico in Chico

Cities[]

Towns[]

Census-designated places[]

  • Bangor
  • Berry Creek
  • Butte Creek Canyon
  • Butte Meadows
  • Butte Valley
  • Cherokee
  • Clipper Mills
  • Cohasset
  • Concow
  • Durham
  • Forbestown
  • Forest Ranch
  • Honcut
  • Kelly Ridge
  • Magalia
  • Nord
  • Oroville East
  • Palermo
  • Rackerby
  • Richvale
  • Robinson Mill
  • South Oroville
  • Stirling City
  • Thermalito
  • Yankee Hill

Unincorporated communities[]

  • Centerville
  • DeSabla
  • Helltown
  • Inskip
  • Irish Town
  • Lomo
  • Lovelock
  • Mineral Slide
  • Powellton

Ghost towns[]

  • Bidwell's Bar – now located under Lake Oroville.
  • Butte Creek
  • Coutolenc
  • Diamondville
  • Forks of Butte – a former gold mining settlement.[35]
  • Hamilton - Butte County's first permanent county seat. John Bidwell discovered gold at Hamilton in 1848, and the settlement arose. It was located on the west side of the Feather River, 15 mi (24 km) downstream from Oroville.
  • Lynchburg

Population ranking[]

The population ranking of the following table is based on the 2010 census of Butte County.[36]

county seat

Rank City/Town/etc. Municipal type Population (2010 Census)
1 Chico City 86,187
2 Paradise Town 26,218
3 Oroville City 15,546
4 Magalia CDP 11,310
5 Oroville East CDP 8,280
6 Thermalito CDP 6,646
7 Gridley City 6,584
8 South Oroville CDP 5,742
9 Durham CDP 5,518
10 Palermo CDP 5,382
11 Kelly Ridge CDP 2,544
12 Biggs City 1,707
13 Berry Creek CDP 1,424
14 Forest Ranch CDP 1,184
15 Butte Creek Canyon CDP 1,086
16 Butte Valley CDP 899
17 Cohasset CDP 847
18 Concow CDP 710
19 Bangor CDP 646
20 Honcut CDP 370
21 Yankee Hill CDP 333
t-22 Forbestown CDP 320
t-22 Nord CDP 320
23 Stirling City CDP 295
24 Richvale CDP 244
25 Rackerby CDP 204
26 Berry Creek Rancheria AIAN 152
27 Clipper Mills CDP 142
28 Robinson Mill CDP 80
29 Cherokee CDP 69
30 Butte Meadows CDP 40
31 Enterprise Rancheria[37] AIAN 1

In popular culture[]

Several movies have been filmed in Butte County, including Gone with the Wind, The Outlaw Josey Wales, Friendly Persuasion, Magic Town, The Klansman, Ruby Ridge: An American Tragedy, The Adventures of Robin Hood and Under Wraps. The most recent season of the television series Sons of Anarchy features an episode in which the Sons come into contact with corrupt police in the fictional town of Eden, located in Butte County.

See also[]

  • List of California counties
  • List of school districts in Butte County, California
  • List of museums in the Shasta Cascade (California)
  • National Register of Historic Places listings in Butte County, California

Sources[]

  • US Department of Education, National Center for Educational Statistics.
  • State of California, Office of Statewide Health Planning and Development.

Notes[]

Notes
References
  1. ^ Other = Some other race + Two or more races
  2. ^ Native American = Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander + American Indian or Alaska Native
  3. ^ Only larceny-theft cases involving property over $400 in value are reported as property crimes.
  4. ^ a b Percentage of registered voters with respect to total population. Percentages of party members with respect to registered voters follow.

References[]

  1. ^ Statistical Report of the California State Board of Agriculture for the Year 1918. Sacramento, CA: California State Printing Office. 1919. pp. 316. https://books.google.com/books?id=5MBBAQAAIAAJ. 
  2. ^ "Butte County High Point". Peakbagger.com. http://www.peakbagger.com/peak.aspx?pid=2535. 
  3. ^ a b c "American FactFinder". U.S. Census Bureau. https://factfinder.census.gov/faces/tableservices/jsf/pages/productview.xhtml?pid=PEP_2018_PEPANNRES&prodType=table. 
  4. ^ a b c "State & County QuickFacts". United States Census Bureau. http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/06/06007.html. 
  5. ^ "Find a County". National Association of Counties. http://www.naco.org/Counties/Pages/FindACounty.aspx. 
  6. ^ Gannett, Henry (1905). The Origin of Certain Place Names in the United States. United States Geological Survey. p. 62. https://pubs.usgs.gov/bul/0258/report.pdf. 
  7. ^ George C. Mansfield, History of Butte County, California, with biographical sketches of the leading men and women of the county who have been identified with its growth and development from the early days to the present, Hathitrust.org, 1918
  8. ^ Butte County Sheriff History Archived February 14, 2018, at the Wayback Machine, Buttecounty.net
  9. ^ "Death toll jumps to 23 as 'challenging' Camp Fire pushes toward Lake Oroville". The Sacramento Bee. November 10, 2018. https://www.sacbee.com/news/state/california/fires/article221471995.html. 
  10. ^ "California wildfires: Death toll rises to 25". November 11, 2018. https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-46168107. 
  11. ^ Gina Martinez (November 14, 2018). "The California Fire That Killed 48 People Is the Deadliest U.S. Wildfire in a Century". http://time.com/5453710/california-camp-fire-deadliest-wildfires-us-history/. 
  12. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q U.S. Census Bureau. American Community Survey, 2011 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, Table B02001. U.S. Census website . Retrieved October 26, 2013.
  13. ^ a b U.S. Census Bureau. American Community Survey, 2011 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, Table B03003. U.S. Census website . Retrieved October 26, 2013.
  14. ^ a b U.S. Census Bureau. American Community Survey, 2011 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, Table B19301. U.S. Census website . Retrieved October 21, 2013.
  15. ^ a b U.S. Census Bureau. American Community Survey, 2011 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, Table B19013. U.S. Census website . Retrieved October 21, 2013.
  16. ^ a b U.S. Census Bureau. American Community Survey, 2011 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, Table B19113. U.S. Census website . Retrieved October 21, 2013.
  17. ^ a b U.S. Census Bureau. American Community Survey, 2011 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates. U.S. Census website . Retrieved October 21, 2013.
  18. ^ U.S. Census Bureau. American Community Survey, 2011 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, Table B01003. U.S. Census website . Retrieved October 21, 2013.
  19. ^ a b c d e f g Data unavailable
  20. ^ "U.S. Decennial Census". United States Census Bureau. https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/decennial-census.html. 
  21. ^ "Historical Census Browser". University of Virginia Library. http://mapserver.lib.virginia.edu. 
  22. ^ Forstall, Richard L., ed (March 27, 1995). "Population of Counties by Decennial Census: 1900 to 1990". United States Census Bureau. https://www.census.gov/population/cencounts/ca190090.txt. 
  23. ^ "Census 2000 PHC-T-4. Ranking Tables for Counties: 1990 and 2000". United States Census Bureau. April 2, 2001. https://www.census.gov/population/www/cen2000/briefs/phc-t4/tables/tab02.pdf. 
  24. ^ "2010 Census P.L. 94-171 Summary File Data". United States Census Bureau. http://www2.census.gov/census_2010/01-Redistricting_File--PL_94-171/California/. 
  25. ^ "U.S. Census website". United States Census Bureau. https://www.census.gov. 
  26. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Office of the Attorney General, Department of Justice, State of California. Table 11: Crimes – 2009 Archived December 2, 2013, at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved November 14, 2013.
  27. ^ a b c United States Department of Justice, Federal Bureau of Investigation. Crime in the United States, 2012, Table 8 (California) Archived June 28, 2016, at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved November 14, 2013.
  28. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q California Secretary of State. February 10, 2013 – Report of Registration Archived November 3, 2013, at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved October 31, 2013.
  29. ^ "Members Assembly". State of California. http://assembly.ca.gov/assemblymembers. 
  30. ^ "Senators". State of California. http://senate.ca.gov/senators. 
  31. ^ CA Secretary of State – Report of Registration – February 10, 2019
  32. ^ https://elections.cdn.sos.ca.gov/sov/2008-general/ssov/10-ballot-measures-statewide-summary-by-county.pdf
  33. ^ "California's 1st Congressional District - Representatives & District Map". Civic Impulse, LLC. http://www.govtrack.us/congress/members/CA/1. 
  34. ^ "Archived copy". http://uselectionatlas.org/RESULTS/. 
  35. ^ Colby, Robert; McDonald, Lois (2005). Magalia to Stirling City. Arcadia. pp. 66. ISBN 9780738530185. https://books.google.com/books?id=5AjvJhoppaUC&pg=PP1. 
  36. ^ "2010 U.S. Census website". United States Census Bureau. https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/decennial-census/decade.2010.html. 
  37. ^ Staff, Website Services & Coordination. "US Census Bureau 2010 Census Interactive Population Map". https://www.census.gov/2010census/popmap/ipmtext.php?fl=1055. 

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Coordinates: 39°40′N 121°36′W / 39.66, -121.60

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