Plumas County, California


Plumas County is a county located in the Sierra Nevada of the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 United States census, the population was 19,790. The county seat is Quincy, and the only incorporated city is Portola. The largest community in the county is East Quincy. The county was named for the Spanish Río de las Plumas, which flows through it. It is also the namesake of a native moth species, Hadena plumasata.

History

The indigenous Mountain Maidu were the primary inhabitants of pre-Columbian Plumas County, living in small settlements along the edges of valleys and subsisting on roots, acorns, grasses, seeds, and occasionally fish and big game. They were decentralized and had no tribal leadership; most bands lived along waterways in and around their own valleys. Areas with high snowfall, including the Mohawk and Sierra valleys, were hunting grounds for game in the warmer months.
In 1848, European Americans discovered gold in the Sierra foothills. Miners were attracted to Plumas County in particular, largely due to the tales of Thomas Stoddard, who claimed to have discovered a lake lined with gold nuggets while lost in the wilderness. Gold-hungry prospectors flooded the area. Though hopeful miners scoured the glacial lakes for months, they did not find the purported lake of gold. But some had success panning for gold in the rivers and creeks in the area, and created squatters' villages, the first non-Native American settlements.
Rough shanty towns quickly sprang up around successful mining areas, including Rich Bar, Indian Bar, and Rabbit Creek. Many were developed adjacent to the Feather River, named Río de las Plumas by Spanish explorer Captain Luis Arguello in 1820.
In 1850, African-American frontiersman James Beckwourth discovered the lowest pass through the Sierras, which became known as Beckwourth Pass. Using the pass, he blazed a trail from Western Nevada through much of Plumas County, eventually terminating in the Sacramento Valley. Many erstwhile miners followed this trail into Plumas County. Beckwourth also set up a trading post in the western Sierra Valley that still stands today. Though the Beckwourth Trail was longer than the original emigrant trail that ran south of Plumas County, its lower elevations extended its seasonal use when the higher trail was snowbound and impassable. Between 1851 and 1854, the Beckwourth Trail was frequently traveled, but in 1854, use dropped sharply when it became a toll road. The toll to move a ton of freight from Bidwell Bar to Quincy was about $18. This made using the Beckwourth Road an expensive enterprise and use of the Beckwourth Trail declined.
Plumas County was formed in 1854 during a meeting of three commissioners at the American Ranch in Quincy. It was carved from the eastern portion of Butte County. Quincy, originally a mining town, was chosen as the county seat after an early settler donated a plot of land there to establish the seat. Once it became the seat, nearby Elizabethtown faded and ultimately became defunct. In 1864, the state legislature took a large portion of Plumas County to organize Lassen County. Shortly afterward, Plumas County annexed part of Sierra County, including the prosperous mining town of La Porte.
Over the next decades, different industries drove the growth of the various settlements that sprang up around the county. Greenville began as a mining and farming community in Indian Valley in the late 1850s. Chester was formed near the area that is now Lake Almanor, as a result of cattle ranching and the timber industry.
When the Western Pacific Railroad was constructed in 1910, Portola developed as an important railroad stop. Thanks to the railroad, Plumas County could export its lumber beyond the local area, and the timber industry became dominant in the county's economy for decades. As the railroad route extended up the Feather River Canyon, it was also used by the area's first tourists and sightseers. When the Feather River Highway was completed in 1937 with federal investment in infrastructure by President Franklin D. Roosevelt during the Great Depression, Plumas County became linked to the Sacramento Valley year-round thanks to the route's low elevation.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has an area of, of which is land and is water.
Plumas County is in the far northern end of the Sierra Nevada range. The area's rugged terrain marks the transition point between the northern Sierra Nevada and the southern end of the Cascade Range. Lassen Peak, the southernmost volcanic peak in the Cascade Range, is just north of Plumas County's border, and part of Lassen Volcanic National Park extends into the county's northwest corner.
Plumas National Forest's offer a wide variety of outdoor recreation opportunities, including hiking, camping, kayaking, swimming, mountain biking, hunting and fishing. The area has more than 100 natural and artificial lakes. Many of the natural lakes are glacial in origin and can be found in and around Lakes Basin Recreation Area. The artificial lakes include Lake Almanor, Lake Davis, Frenchman Lake, Little Grass Valley Reservoir, Antelope Lake, and Bucks Lake. Plumas County also has more than of rivers and streams. All three forks of the Feather River run through the area.

Designated Natural Areas

  • Butterfly Valley Botanical Area
  • Elephants Playground
  • Happy Valley
  • Little Last Chance Canyon Special Interest Area
  • North Valley
  • Valley Creek Special Interest Area

    Water areas

  • Antelope Lake
  • Belden Forebay
  • Bucks Lake
  • Butt Valley Reservoir
  • Doyle Reservoir
  • Eureka Lake
  • Faggs Debris Dam
  • Faggs Reservoir
  • Fowler Lake
  • Frenchman Lake
  • Grizzly Forebay
  • Grizzly Ice Pond
  • Juniper Lake
  • Lake Almanor
  • Lake Davis
  • Little Grass Valley Reservoir
  • Lower Bucks Lake
  • Murphy Lake
  • Onion Valley Reservoir
  • Rock Creek Reservoir
  • Round Valley Reservoir
  • Silver Lake
  • Slate Creek Reservoir
  • Smith Lake
  • Three Lakes
  • Walker Mine Tailings Reservoir

    Adjacent counties

  • Sierra County – south
  • Yuba County – southwest
  • Butte County – west
  • Tehama County – northwest
  • Shasta County – northwest
  • Lassen County – northeast

    National protected areas

  • Lassen National Forest
  • Lassen Volcanic National Park
  • Plumas National Forest
  • Tahoe National Forest

    Demographics

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, the county had a population of 19,790. The median age was 53.0 years, 17.4% of residents were under the age of 18, and 29.8% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 101.1 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 100.4 males age 18 and over.
The racial makeup of the county was 83.9% White, 0.5% Black or African American, 2.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8% Asian, 0.2% Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander, 3.0% from some other race, and 9.2% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 9.6% of the population.
0.0% of residents lived in urban areas, while 100.0% lived in rural areas.
There were 9,216 households in the county, of which 21.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them and 24.8% had a female householder with no spouse or partner present. About 33.5% of all households were made up of individuals and 16.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.
There were 15,396 housing units, of which 40.1% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 70.4% were owner-occupied and 29.6% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 3.1% and the rental vacancy rate was 6.5%.

2010 census

The 2010 United States census reported that Plumas County had a population of 20,007. The racial makeup of Plumas County was 17,797 White, 192 African American, 539 Native American, 134 Asian, 18 Pacific Islander, 603 from other races, and 724 from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1,605 persons.

2000 census

As of the census of 2000, there were 20,824 people, 9,000 households, and 6,047 families residing in the county. The population density was. There were 13,386 housing units at an average density of. The racial makeup of the county was 91.8% White, 0.6% Black or African American, 2.6% Native American, 0.5% Asian, 0.1% Pacific Islander, 1.8% from other races, and 2.6% from two or more races. 5.7% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 16.1% were of German, 15.0% English, 10.1% Irish and 8.0% American ancestry according to Census 2000. 95.4% spoke English and 3.6% Spanish as their first language.
There were 9,000 households, out of which 26.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 55.4% were married couples living together, 8.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 32.8% were non-families. 27.5% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.29 and the average family size was 2.77.
In the county, the population was spread out, with 22.7% under the age of 18, 6.0% from 18 to 24, 22.6% from 25 to 44, 30.8% from 45 to 64, and 17.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 44 years. For every 100 females there were 99.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 97.9 males.
The median income for a household in the county was $36,351, and the median income for a family was $46,119. Males had a median income of $38,742 versus $25,734 for females. The per capita income for the county was $19,391. About 9.0% of families and 13.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 16.7% of those under age 18 and 6.4% of those age 65 or over.

Law and government

Plumas County has five elected Supervisors, each elected within their own district. The Board of Supervisors oversees the management of county government and members serve four-year terms. The Clerk of the Board of Supervisors provides support to the Board of Supervisors and information to the public.
The County Administrative Office's purpose is to facilitate the delivery of cost-effective county services in accordance with the vision and policies outlined by the Board of Supervisors. Its responsibilities include monitoring legislative affairs, preparing the county's annual budget, and undertaking studies and investigations for the Board of Supervisors.
The sheriff is the chief law enforcement officer of the county. The sheriff's jurisdiction extends throughout the county, including federal and state lands. The county sheriff is elected to the nonpartisan office for a four-year term and is charged with preserving the peace, enforcing criminal statutes, and investigating known or suspected criminal activity.
More than three-quarters of Plumas County's is National Forest Service land. The management of Plumas National Forest is overseen by three districts: Beckwourth Ranger District, Mt. Hough Ranger District, and Feather River Ranger District.