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| Butte County, California | |
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| Map | |
 Location in the state of California |
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 California's location in the U.S. |
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| Statistics | |
| Founded | 1850 |
|---|---|
| Seat | Oroville |
| Largest city | Chico |
| Area - Total - Land - Water |
1,677 sq mi (4,343 km²) 1,639 sq mi (4,245 km²) 38 sq mi (98 km²), 2.24% |
| Population - (2000) - Density |
203,171 124/sq mi (48/km²) |
| Website: www.buttecounty.net | |
Butte County is a county located in the Central Valley of the U.S. state of California, north of the state capital, Sacramento. As of the 2000 census, it had a population of 203,171. 2005 estimates place this at 214,185. The county seat is Oroville. Butte County is the "Land of Natural Wealth and Beauty."
Butte County is watered by the Feather River and the Sacramento River. Butte Creek and Big Chico Creek are additional perennial streams, both tributary to the Sacramento. It is the site of Feather Falls, the sixth largest waterfall in the United States. The county is the home of California State University, Chico and of Butte Community 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 used to allow residents to burn household trash outdoors.
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History
Butte County was one of California's first counties, created in 1850 at time of statehood. Part of the county's territory was given to Plumas County in 1854 and to Tehama County in 1856.
Its name is derived from the Marysville or Sutter Buttes, which lay within the boundaries when it was created. The word butte is derived from the Teutonic word meaning "a blunt extension or elevation." In the French language, it signifies "a small hill or mound of earth detached from any mountain range." Butte is the only California County whose name is a French word. There is also Butte Creek which flows through Butte County, and has buttes.
On June 21, 1879, Black Bart robbed a stagecoach going from La Porte, California to Oroville, California.
In mid-June 2008, Butte was one of two California counties to announce that county officials would stop performing civil marriage ceremonies, but will continue issuing marriage licenses as required by law. The county cited budget and staffing constraints for the decision, saying it didn't have the resources to conduct ceremonies for both same-sex and opposite sex couples. The San Francisco Chronicle noted that the other county, Kern County, made a similar announcement after lawyers told Kern County Clerk Ann Barnett she could not refuse to marry same-sex couples.1
Geography
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 1,677 square miles (4,344 km²), of which, 1,639 square miles (4,246 km²) of it is land and 38 square miles (97 km²) of it (2.24%) is water.
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.
Cities and towns
Unincorporated communities
- Bangor
- Cohasset
- Concow
- Durham
- Magalia
- Oroville East
- Palermo
- Richvale
- South Oroville
- Stirling City
- Thermalito
- Yankee Hill
Ghost towns
- Hamilton - the original county seat of Butte County, this city has long been forgotten; the only reminder of it is now an overgrown cemetery.
- Bidwell's Bar - now located under Lake Oroville
- Forks of Butte
Adjacent counties
- Yuba County, California - south
- Sutter County, California - south
- Colusa County, California - southwest
- Glenn County, California - west
- Tehama County, California - north
- Plumas County, California - east
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Tehama County |
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Plumas County | |||||
 Butte County, California  |
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| Colusa County | Yuba County and Sutter County |
National protected areas
- Lassen National Forest (part)
- Plumas National Forest (part)
Transportation infrastructure
Major highways
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.
Airports
General Aviation airports in Butte County include:
- Chico Municipal Airport
- Oroville Municipal Airport
- Paradise Airport
- Ranchaero Airport
- Richvale Airport
Demographics
As of the census2 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 84.52% White, 1.39% Black or African American, 1.90% Native American, 3.32% Asian, 0.15% Pacific Islander, 4.82% from other races, and 3.90% from two or more races. 10.50% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 14.2% were of German, 11.1% English, 10.2% Irish, 7.8% American and 5.6% Italian ancestry according to Census 2000. 87.9% spoke English, 7.8% Spanish and 1.4% Hmong as their first language.
There were 79,566 households out of which 28.40% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 46.70% were married couples living together, 11.20% had a female householder with no husband present, and 37.90% were non-families. 27.20% of all households were made up of individuals and 11.10% 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 24.00% under the age of 18, 13.60% from 18 to 24, 24.80% from 25 to 44, 21.80% from 45 to 64, and 15.80% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females there were 96.10 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.60 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 12.20% of families and 19.80% of the population were below the poverty line, including 23.80% of those under age 18 and 7.30% of those age 65 or over.
Government
| Year | GOP | DEM | Others |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | 47.9% 39,954 | 49.7% 41,474 | 2.7% 1,970 |
| 2004 | 53.7% 51,662 | 44.1% 42,448 | 2.1% 2,047 |
| 2000 | 54.5% 45,584 | 37.4% 31,338 | 8.1% 6,799 |
| 1996 | 49.0% 38,961 | 38.5% 30,651 | 12.5% 9,938 |
| 1992 | 37.2% 31,608 | 38.2% 32,489 | 24.6% 20,917 |
| 1988 | 56.0% 40,143 | 42.5% 30,406 | 1.5% 1,082 |
| 1984 | 63.1% 45,381 | 35.3% 25,421 | 1.6% 1,162 |
| 1980 | 57.9% 38,188 | 29.6% 19,520 | 12.6% 8,304 |
| 1976 | 51.8% 28,400 | 44.1% 24,203 | 4.1% 2,251 |
| 1972 | 57.6% 28,819 | 36.8% 18,401 | 5.6% 2,808 |
| 1968 | 56.7% 22,225 | 32.9% 12,887 | 10.5% 4,099 |
| 1964 | 48.4% 19,574 | 51.5% 20,831 | 0.0% 14 |
| 1960 | 57.6% 20,838 | 41.9% 15,163 | 0.5% 174 |
Local
The citizens of the county of Butte are represented by the five member Butte County Board of Supervisors. Current Supervisors are:
- Jane Dolan
- Bill Connelly
- Curt Josiassen
- Kim Yamaguchi
- Maureen Kirk
State
Most of Butte County falls within California's 3rd Assembly District with the southwest corner of the county being in the 2nd Assembly District. The 3rd district is represented by Rick Keene (R-Chico), and the 2nd by Doug La Malfa (R-Richvale) in the California State Assembly. All of Butte County falls within the 4th senate district, represented by Sam Aanestad (R, Grass Valley) in the California State Senate.
On Nov. 4, 2008 Butte County voted 56.7 % for Proposition 8 which amended the California Constitution to ban same-sex marriages.
Federal
Most citizens of Butte County are represented in California's 2nd congressional district by Republican Wally Herger, while the rest of the county is represented in California's 4th congressional district by Republican John Doolittle.
Butte is a Republican-leaning county in Presidential and congressional elections. The last Democrat to win a majority in the county was Lyndon Johnson in 1964, although Bill Clinton and Barack Obama won pluralities in 1992 and 2008, respectively.
Educational institutions
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 District
- Oroville Union High School District
- Palermo Union School District
- Paradise Unified School District
- Pioneer Union Elementary School District
- Thermalito Union School District
Butte County contains the following colleges and universities:
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.
The library bookmobile provides library services to rural and mountain communities. 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 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.
As film location
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.
Sources
- US Department of Education, National Center for Educational Statistics.
- State of California, Office of Statewide Health Planning and Development.
See also
References
- ^ Lagos, Marisa. (2008, June 11). 2 counties to halt all weddings, gay or not. The San Francisco Chronicle [1]
- ^ "American FactFinder". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved on 2008-01-31.
External links
- Butte County local government
- Butte County Search and Rescue
- Butte County Fire/Rescue
- CSU Chico (Chico State)
- Butte College
- Butte County Association of Governments
- Butte County Library
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- This page was last modified on 31 December 2008, at 07:56.
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