Oroville, California

Oroville, California
City

Historic Downtown Oroville

Seal
Nickname(s): "City of Gold"

Location of Oroville in Butte County, California
Oroville, California

Location in the contiguous United States

Coordinates: 39°31′N 121°33′W / 39.517°N 121.550°W / 39.517; -121.550Coordinates: 39°31′N 121°33′W / 39.517°N 121.550°W / 39.517; -121.550
Country United States of America
State California
County Butte
Incorporated January 3, 1906[1]
Government
  City Council Mayor Linda Dahlmeier
Vice Mayor Janet Goodson
Art Hatley
Jack Berry
Marlene Del Rosario
Scott Thomson
Linda Draper
  State Senator Jim Nielsen (R)[2]
  State Assembly James Gallagher (R)[3]
  U.S. Congress Doug LaMalfa (R)[4]
Area[5]
  City 13.86 sq mi (35.91 km2)
  Land 13.85 sq mi (35.86 km2)
  Water 0.02 sq mi (0.05 km2)  0.14%
Elevation 167 ft (51 m)
Population (2010)
  City 15,546
  Estimate (2016)[6] 19,895
  Density 1,374.72/sq mi (530.77/km2)
  Metro 48,000 (estimated)
Time zone PST (UTC-8)
  Summer (DST) PDT (UTC-7)
ZIP codes 95940, 95965, 95966
Area code(s) 530
FIPS code 06-54386
GNIS feature IDs 277570, 2411337
Website cityoforoville.org

Oroville is the county seat of Butte County, California, United States. The population was 15,506 at the 2010 census, up from 13,004 in the 2000 census. Oroville is considered the gateway to Lake Oroville and Feather River recreational areas. The city of Oroville has recently annexed two locations in South Oroville, areas A and B, which have a combined population of 2,725 people. The U.S. Census Bureau estimated the population of the city to be 17,996 as of January 1, 2016, up 1,908 people or 11.9 percent since 2010. The Berry Creek Rancheria of Maidu Indians of California is headquartered here.

Oroville is located off of State Route 70, and is in close proximity to State Route 99, which connects Butte County with Interstate 5. Chico, California is located about 25 minutes north of the city, and Sacramento lies about an hour south.

History

Oroville is situated at the base of the foothills on the banks of the Feather River where it flows out of the Sierra Nevada onto the flat floor of the Sacramento Valley. It was established as the head of navigation on the Feather River to supply gold miners during the California Gold Rush.

The town was originally called "Ophir City", but the name was changed to Oroville when the first post office opened in 1854 ("oro" is "gold" in Spanish).[7] The City Of Oroville was incorporated on January 3, 1906.

Gold was found at Bidwell Bar, one of the first gold mining sites in California, bringing thousands of prospectors to the Oroville area seeking riches. Now inundated by the waters of enormous Lake Oroville, which was filled in 1968, Bidwell Bar is memorialized by the Bidwell Bar Bridge, an original remnant from the area and the first suspension bridge in California (California Historical Landmark #314). In the early 20th century the Western Pacific Railroad completed construction of the all-weather Feather River Canyon route through the Sierra Nevadas giving it the nickname of "The Feather River Route". Oroville would serve as an important stop for the famous California Zephyr during its 20-year run. In 1983, this became a part of the Union Pacific Railroad as their Feather River Canyon Subdivision. A major highway, State Route 70, roughly parallels the railroad line winding through the canyon.

Oroville Chinese Temple

The Chinese Temple (CHL #770 and listed on the National Register of Historic Places) is another monument to Oroville's storied past. Chinese laborers from the pioneer era established the Temple as a place of worship for followers of Chinese Popular Religion and the three major Chinese religions: Taoism, Buddhism, and Confucianism. The Chinese Temple and Garden, as it is now called, has an extensive collection of artifacts and a serene garden to enjoy.

The olive-canning industry was founded in Oroville by Freda Ehmann, the "mother of ripe olives." She built a large cannery in Oroville, and by 1900 was the president of the world's largest canned olive factory. Ehmann was a believer in women's suffrage and a friend of Susan B. Anthony[8]

Ishi, Oroville's most famous resident, was the last of the Yahi Indians and is considered the last "Stone Age" Indian to come out of the wilderness and into western civilization. When he appeared out of the hills in East Oroville in 1911, he was immediately thrust into the national spotlight. The Visitor's Center at Lake Oroville has a thorough exhibit and documentary film on Ishi and his life in society.

Archaeological finds place the northwestern border for the prehistoric Martis people in the Oroville area.[9]

1881 lynching

On August 7, 1881, beloved elderly pioneer Jack Crum was stomped to death by local bully Tom Noacks in Chico, California. The young Noacks was feared by the locals of Butte County, not only because of his size and strength, but because he was mentally unbalanced and enjoyed punching oxen in the head. Noacks was arrested and jailed in Chico’s jail, but once word got out that the old pioneer had been murdered, the authorities moved him to the Butte County jail in Oroville for his safety. Crum’s friends knew that Noacks was in the county jail, and they made their way to Oroville with rope in hand. Knocking on the jail door, the men told the jailer that they had a prisoner from the town of Biggs, California. Once in the jail, they overpowered the jailer and dragged Noacks from his cell. They took the man to Crum’s former farm and hanged him from an old cottonwood tree. Nobody was ever prosecuted for the lynching.[10]

Geography

Table Mountain Near Oroville

Oroville is situated at the head of navigation on the Feather River. The Yuba River flows into the Feather River near Marysville, California and these flow together to the Sacramento River. Geologically, Oroville is situated at the meeting place of three provinces: the Central Valley alluvial plain to the west, the crystalline Sierra Nevada to the SE and the volcanic Cascade Mountains to the north. It has a Mediterranean climate.

Oroville sits on the eastern rim of the Great Valley, defined today by the floodplains of the Sacramento River and its tributaries. Around Oroville these sediments are dominated by thick fans of Feather River sediments, but just east of this there is a thin, N-S band of late Cretaceous sediments. These sit on top of the Sierran basement, which beneath eastern Oroville comprise greenschist-facies metavolcanic rocks of Jurassic age, giving way to granites of the Sierra batholith to the east. These are manifestations of a vigorous island arc sequence, built out over an east-dipping subduction zone of mid-to-late Mesozoic age. The gold veins lace this ancient arc, remobilized by Mesozoic shearing and intrusions of igneous rock. The crystalline foothills are locally overlain by a Cenozoic sequence of Eocene clean beach sands overlain by Neogene volcanics, including the Diamond Head-like profile of "Table Mountain".

Climate

According to the Köppen Climate Classification system, Oroville has a warm-summer Mediterranean climate, abbreviated "Csa" on climate maps.[11]

According to US climate data, on the average Oroville receives 30.7 inches of precipitation per year, which is about 20% less than the national average, but somewhat higher than the average California rainfall.[12][13]

Climate data for Oroville
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Record high °F (°C) 82
(28)
82
(28)
88
(31)
96
(36)
104
(40)
115
(46)
115
(46)
113
(45)
108
(42)
102
(39)
90
(32)
76
(24)
115
(46)
Average high °F (°C) 55.1
(12.8)
60.8
(16)
65.3
(18.5)
71.7
(22.1)
80.8
(27.1)
89.8
(32.1)
96.4
(35.8)
94.7
(34.8)
89
(32)
78.6
(25.9)
64.7
(18.2)
55.3
(12.9)
75.2
(24)
Average low °F (°C) 37.2
(2.9)
40.4
(4.7)
43.4
(6.3)
46.3
(7.9)
52.2
(11.2)
58.3
(14.6)
62
(17)
59.9
(15.5)
55.6
(13.1)
49
(9)
42
(6)
37.3
(2.9)
48.6
(9.2)
Record low °F (°C) 22
(−6)
22
(−6)
26
(−3)
29
(−2)
30
(−1)
35
(2)
45
(7)
42
(6)
40
(4)
27
(−3)
23
(−5)
12
(−11)
12
(−11)
Average precipitation inches (mm) 5.55
(141)
4.84
(122.9)
4.05
(102.9)
2.21
(56.1)
1
(30)
0.44
(11.2)
0.04
(1)
0.14
(3.6)
0.4
(10)
1.65
(41.9)
3.57
(90.7)
4.8
(122)
28.69
(728.7)
Average snowfall inches (cm) 0
(0)
0
(0)
0
(0)
0
(0)
0
(0)
0
(0)
0
(0)
0
(0)
0
(0)
0
(0)
0
(0)
0
(0)
0
(0)
Average precipitation days 11 10 9 7 4 2 0 0 1 4 8 10 66
Source: WRCC[14]

Demographics

Historical population
Census Pop.
18602,429
18701,425−41.3%
18801,74322.3%
18901,7872.5%
19103,859
19203,340−13.4%
19303,69810.7%
19404,42119.6%
19505,38721.9%
19606,11513.5%
19707,53623.2%
19808,68315.2%
199011,96037.7%
200013,0048.7%
201015,54619.5%
Est. 201619,895[6]28.0%
U.S. Decennial Census[15]

2010

The 2010 United States Census[16] reported that Oroville had a population of 15,546. The population density was 1,194.8 people per square mile (461.3/km²). The racial makeup of Oroville was 11,686 (75.2%) White, 453 (2.9%) African American, 573 (3.7%) Native American, 1,238 (8.0%) Asian, 56 (0.4%) Pacific Islander, 554 (3.6%) from other races, and 986 (6.3%) from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1,945 persons (12.5%).

The Census reported that 14,662 people (94.3% of the population) lived in households, 72 (0.5%) lived in non-institutionalized group quarters, and 812 (5.2%) were institutionalized.

There were 5,646 households, out of which 2,126 (37.7%) had children under the age of 18 living in them, 1,893 (33.5%) were opposite-sex married couples living together, 1,174 (20.8%) had a female householder with no husband present, 430 (7.6%) had a male householder with no wife present. There were 615 (10.9%) unmarried opposite-sex partnerships, and 33 (0.6%) same-sex married couples or partnerships. 1,699 households (30.1%) were made up of individuals and 718 (12.7%) had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.60. There were 3,497 families (61.9% of all households); the average family size was 3.22.

The population was spread out with 4,267 people (27.4%) under the age of 18, 1,969 people (12.7%) aged 18 to 24, 3,940 people (25.3%) aged 25 to 44, 3,417 people (22.0%) aged 45 to 64, and 1,953 people (12.6%) who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 31.5 years. For every 100 females there were 93.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.8 males.

There were 6,194 housing units at an average density of 476.0 per square mile (183.8/km²), of which 2,423 (42.9%) were owner-occupied, and 3,223 (57.1%) were occupied by renters. The homeowner vacancy rate was 3.6%; the rental vacancy rate was 8.4%. 6,293 people (40.5% of the population) lived in owner-occupied housing units and 8,369 people (53.8%) lived in rental housing units.

2000

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 12.3 square miles (31.8 km²), of which, 12.2 square miles (31.7 km²) of it is land and 0.04 square miles (0.1 km²) of it (0.16%) is water.

As of the census[17] of 2000, there were 13,004 people, 4,881 households, and 2,948 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,061.4 people per square mile (409.9/km²). There were 5,419 housing units at an average density of 442.3 per square mile (170.8/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 77.2% White, 4.0% Black or African American, 3.9% Native American, 6.3% Asian, 0.3% Pacific Islander, 2.8% from other races, and 5.4% from two or more races. 8.3% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 4,881 households out of which 33.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 36.4% were married couples living together, 18.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 39.6% were non-families. 33.2% of all households were made up of individuals and 14.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.50 and the average family size was 3.19.

In the city, the population was spread out with 30.1% under the age of 18, 10.3% from 18 to 24, 25.8% from 25 to 44, 19.2% from 45 to 64, and 14.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 33 years. For every 100 females there were 95.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 90.7 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $21,911, and the median income for a family was $27,666. Males had a median income of $28,587 versus $21,916 for females. The per capita income for the city was $12,345. About 16.2% of families and 23.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 39.3% of those under age 18 and 8.9% of those age 65 or over.

Oroville is home to a considerable number of ethnic Hmong. The Hmong migrated from Southeast Asia, especially from the country Laos, after the Vietnam War. The Hmong were allies of the American forces during the Vietnam War, many were recruited to help fight the Communist-aligned North Vietnamese forces in Laos and Vietnam. The Hmong people were given blanket political asylum after the fall of Saigon to the NVA in 1975. Every year there is an annual festival during autumn which was originally a harvest festival but now called the New Year celebration.[18] In 2010, 773 people of Hmong descent lived in the city of Oroville, 726 in South Oroville, 640 in Thermalito, and 140 in Oroville East.[19] In 2010, the Oroville/Chico Hmong community was the 9th largest in the Western US.[20]

In the 1950s, a community of Romanians migrated from Europe, with 560 remaining at the time of the 2010 census.

American Indians made up 3.7% of Oroville's population in 2010.[21] The largest tribal group is the local Maidu. The Berry Creek Rancheria of Maidu Indians of California is headquartered in Oroville, with 306 members.[22] It contains world's largest museum of Maidu culture is located in Oroville East, at the Lookout Museum.

Economy

The 2008 cost of living index in Oroville was 79.0 (low, U.S. average is 100).

As the neighboring city of Chico experiences growth in retail, education, and technology industries, Oroville has experienced population growth associated with commuters attracted to lower property costs, and a smaller cost of living.[23]

In 2007, the largest industries were agriculture, healthcare, construction, and retail.[24]

Top employers

According to the City's 2008 Comprehensive Annual Financial Report, the top employers in the city are:[25]

# Employer # of Employees
1 County of Butte 2,384
2 Oroville Hospital 1,233
3 Pacific Coast Producers 725
4 Gold Country Casino 520
5 RCBS 169
6 Roplast Industries 150
7 Sierra Pacific Industries 135
8 Currier Square 127
9 City of Oroville 119
10 The Home Depot 105

Tourism

Photograph of Lake Oroville in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada mountains.

The Oroville Municipal Airport is located south of State Route 162 west of State Route 70.

Parks and Recreation

Oroville has several parks featuring playgrounds, picnic tables and benches.[26] Parks and recreation areas include Bedrock Park, Centennial Plaza, Hammon Park, Hewitt Park, Rotary Park, Riverbend Park, Nelson Sports Complex, Gary Nolan Baseball Complex, and the Feather River Bike Trail.[27]

Education

The Oroville Union High School District includes all of the greater Oroville area, including many neighborhoods that are not within the city limits of Oroville. The District includes two traditional high schools, Las Plumas High School and Oroville High School, and Prospect High School, which functions as a continuation/remedial high school. The city also has an Adult School, Oroville Adult School.

There are also several small rural school districts in the surrounding areas.

Oroville Elementary School District

Elementary Schools

Middle Schools

Oroville Union High School District

High Schools

Higher education

Media

Oroville is home to KOYO-LP, a low-power community radio station owned and operated by the Bird Street Arbor Day Media Project. The station was built by numerous volunteers from Oroville and around the region in April 2002 at the second Prometheus Radio Project barnraising. KOYO-LP broadcasts music, news, and public affairs to listeners at 107.1FM.

Infrastructure

Hospital

Oroville Hospital is a general acute care hospital with a Level III trauma center and offers basic emergency care located in the City of Oroville.

Fire department

The Oroville Fire Department is responsible for calls within the city jurisdiction of approximately 13 square miles (34 km2) with a population of 16,260 (as of 2015).[28]

Superfund sites

Oroville has three designated superfund cleanup sites, two of which have been cleaned up and delisted: a Koppers Co. wood treatment plant, a Louisiana Pacific sawmill, and the Western Pacific railyard.

The Koppers Co. plant was listed on September 21, 1984 for pentachlorophenol (PCP), dioxin, furan, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH), and heavy metals (copper, chromium, and arsenic) contamination due to chemicals spilled on unpaved areas.[29][30]

The Louisiana-Pacific sawmill was listed on June 10, 1986 for pentachlorophenol PCP, dioxin, furan, heavy metals (arsenic, boron, and copper), and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) contamination. Following remediation, the site was delisted on November 21, 1996. The sawmill was shut down in 2001.[31][32]

The Western Pacific Railroad yard was listed on August 30, 1990 for volatile organic compound (VOC) and heavy metals (arsenic, lead, and chromium) contamination. Following remediation, the site was delisted on August 29, 2001.[33][34]

Notable people

In the early 1970s, the movie The Klansman was filmed in Oroville.[37]

This Is Oroville, a novelty song recorded and released as a 45 rpm single in 1987 by local teacher Steve Herman, is generally considered to be among the more popular California 'city songs'.

Notable events

Sister cities

References

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  2. "Senators". State of California. Retrieved March 20, 2013.
  3. "Members Assembly". State of California. Retrieved March 20, 2013.
  4. "California's 1st Congressional District - Representatives & District Map". Civic Impulse, LLC. Retrieved March 2, 2013.
  5. "2016 U.S. Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved Jun 28, 2017.
  6. 1 2 "Population and Housing Unit Estimates". Retrieved June 9, 2017.
  7. Durham, David L. (1998). California's Geographic Names: A Gazetteer of Historic and Modern Names of the State. Clovis, Calif.: Word Dancer Press. p. 288. ISBN 1-884995-14-4.
  8. Vicki L. Ruiz. Cannery Women, Cannery Lives. University of New Mexico Press, 1987, pp. 23-24.
  9. Brauman, Sharon K. (2004-10-06). "NORTH FORK PETROGLYPHS". ucnrs.org. Retrieved 2008-08-15.
  10. Kulczyk,David. (2008). California Justice: Shootouts, Lynching and Assassinations in the Golden State. Word Dancer Press. P41 ISBN 1-884995-54-3
  11. Climate Summary for Oroville, California
  12. Climate Oroville - California, U.S. Climate Data. Retrieved 13 Feb. 2017.
  13. Oroville, California Average Rainfall. Retrieved 13 Feb. 2017.
  14. "ORLEANS, CA (046521)". Western Regional Climate Center. Retrieved December 3, 2015.
  15. "Census of Population and Housing". Census.gov. Archived from the original on May 12, 2015. Retrieved June 4, 2015.
  16. "2010 Census Interactive Population Search: CA - Oroville city". U.S. Census Bureau. Retrieved July 12, 2014.
  17. "American FactFinder". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on 2013-09-11. Retrieved 2008-01-31.
  18. http://www.krcrtv.com/news/thousands-attend-oroville-hmong-new-year-festival/10618907
  19. http://www.vuenational.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/2010-Hmong-Census.pdf
  20. http://hmongstudies.org/PfeiferSullivanKYangWYangHSJ13.2.pdf
  21. https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/table/PST045215/0654386
  22. "California Indians and their Reservations." SDSU Library and Information Access.
  23. http://www.bestplaces.net/cost-of-living/chico-ca/oroville-ca/100000
  24. http://www.cityoforoville.org/home/showdocument?id=4775
  25. City of Montebello CAFR
  26. "City of Oroville: City Parks". City of Oroville.
  27. "FRRPD Facilities". FRRPD.
  28. "City Quick Facts". City of Oroville. Retrieved 11 January 2015.
  29. "NPL Site Narrative for Koppers Co., Inc. (Oroville Plant)". National Priorities List. United States Environmental Protection Agency. February 24, 2006. Retrieved 2007-08-10.
  30. "Koppers Industries Inc. (Oroville Plant)". Region 9: Superfund. United States Environmental Protection Agency. Retrieved 2007-08-10.
  31. "NPL Site Narrative for Louisiana-Pacific Corp.". National Priorities List. United States Environmental Protection Agency. February 24, 2006. Retrieved 2007-08-10.
  32. "Louisiana-Pacific Corp.". Region 9: Superfund. United States Environmental Protection Agency. Retrieved 2007-08-10.
  33. "NPL Site Narrative for Western Pacific Railroad Co.". National Priorities List. United States Environmental Protection Agency. February 24, 2006. Retrieved 2007-08-10.
  34. "Western Pacific Railroad Co.". Region 9: Superfund. United States Environmental Protection Agency. Retrieved 2007-08-10.
  35. "Actress Marilyn Nash dies, Starred with Chaplin in 'Monsieur Verdoux'". Variety. 2011-10-14. Retrieved 2011-10-16.
  36. Perry, Tony (2013-11-03). "John Spence dies at 95; Navy diver and pioneering WWII 'frogman'". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2013-11-27.
  37. The Klansman on IMDb
  38. https://web.archive.org/web/20160303183031/https://www.facebook.com/ext/share.php?sid=55145174707&h=aflu7&u=7hblw. Archived from the original on March 3, 2016. Retrieved December 26, 2015. Missing or empty |title= (help)
  39. https://web.archive.org/web/20090226202207/http://www.johnmartin.com/earthquakes/eqpapers/00000052.htm. Archived from the original on February 26, 2009. Retrieved March 12, 2009. Missing or empty |title= (help)
  40. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0075029/locations?ref_=tt_dt_dt
  41. "Location of U-2s".
  42. "Dedication planned for U-2 crash victims memorial". Oroville Mercury Register. Oroville, CA. November 15, 2013.
  43. "Damaged Assessed From Tornadoes". Sacramento Bee. Sacramento, CA. Archived from the original on December 3, 2011.
  44. Byrd, Deborah (May 24, 2013). "5.7-magnitude earthquake in northern California last night". EarthSky.org.
  45. Chico considers establishing permanent sister city guidelines - Chico Enterprise Record Archived September 27, 2011, at the Wayback Machine.
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