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B+History
History · Oroville

Oroville’s post office opened in 1854, and 15% of its homes were built before 1940

More historic than 69% of U.S. towns · #59 of 847 in California. What drives it

5 places in town are on the National Register. Below: 5 old photos and papers, maps from 1884 on, and the census since 1860.

1854first post office
5on the National Register
15%homes built before 1940
5old photos & papers
15famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Oroville’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Oroville began

When was Oroville founded?

1854

The Oroville post office opened in 1854, the earliest record of the town by name.

First census: 2,429 in 18602020 census: 20,042172 years

How historic is Oroville?

B+

More historic than 69% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: the first Oroville post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓
History grade

What drives Oroville’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Oroville is more historic than 69% of U.S. towns, #59 of 847 in California. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its age pulls it down.

B+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Oroville’s overall grade.
Founding era1854, from the first post office: founded 1850–1899, an older era than 37% of U.S. townsC+Homes built before 194015.4% of homes (±3.0) · typical CA town 3.4% · U.S. 8.4%BNational Register5 listings, 21 historic buildings, 10.6 per 10,000 residents · typical CA town 0.0 · U.S. 2.4A
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 69%
NewerOlder
California towns of 2,500+ (847)Ahead of 93%

Few California towns list much on the Register (a typical California town has 0.0 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Oroville’s 10.6 sits above most of its state (92% of California towns have fewer) while its 21 historic buildings outnumber those of 80% of U.S. towns.

How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from C+ to A−. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±3.0 points). The founding year is the first post office, not a stated founding date.

Founding year: the first post office (other dates in Quick answers). Homes: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register: National Park Service, May 2026 list; each listing counted once (boundary changes and added documentation belong to their listing), and a historic district counts its contributing buildings. How TownRatings grades history →

What stands out about Oroville’s past

Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.

Shrank, then grewLost a third of its people between 1860 and 1870, then grew more than tenfold.Mapped building by building4 fire insurance maps, 1884 to 1909, drew every building in Oroville.On the map since 19123 editions of the USGS map, 1912 to 1970. Watch Oroville change.Landmarks on the Register5 places on the National Register.
★ What stands out · People over time

Oroville, census by census

05,00010,00015,00020,0001900195020002,429 in 1860Low: 1,425

Lost a third of its people between 1860 and 1870, then grew more than tenfold.

16 censuses, 1860–2020.

U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Oroville’s Wikipedia page.

Every building

Oroville, building by building, 1884–1909

Fire insurance maps drew every building, what it was made of and what it was used for, so insurers could price the risk of fire. Pick a year, then a sheet.

Oroville fire insurance map, 1884, sheet 11884Sheet 1 of 2
Edition
BrickWoodStone

Sanborn Map Company, via the Library of Congress. Editions published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.

On the map

Oroville on the map, 1912 to 1970

Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Oroville. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.

Oroville on the 1912 USGS mapOroville on the 1947 USGS mapOroville on the 1970 USGS map1912Oroville sheet · 1:31,680

U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Oroville.

The story

How Oroville came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Oroville.

Read it all →

Oroville is on the banks of the Feather River, which flows from the Sierra Nevada onto the flat floor of the California Central Valley. During the California Gold Rush, it was created as the Feather River's head of navigation to serve miners. The original inhabitants of Oroville were the Konkow subdivision of Maidu people. In their native language, the Oroville area is ʔópamtani.

The town was originally named "Ophir City", but was renamed Oroville when the first post office opened in 1854 (oro is Spanish for "gold"). The City of Oroville was incorporated on January 3, 1906.

Chapters1881 lynchingHate groupsOroville Dam crisisCOVID-19

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Oroville, 1854 to 2020

Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.

  1. 19th century
  2. 1854Post officeThe Oroville post office opens
  3. 1863BuiltOroville Chinese Temple is built
  4. 20th century
  5. 1900In the archiveJohn H. Hogan - Oroville and Marysville Stagecoach
  6. 1911In the archiveJohn H. Hogan - Oroville High School
  7. 1912BuiltOroville Carnegie Library is built
  8. 1912On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  9. 1929Born hereRobert H. Young is born here
  10. 1939Born hereJack Yerman is born here
  11. 1954Born hereRocky Smith is born here
  12. 1960Born hereDoug LaMalfa is born here
  13. 1998In the archiveOroville Municipal Airport CA 18 August 1998
  14. 21st century
  15. 2020CensusPopulation peaks at 20,042
By decade

Oroville, decade by decade

3 decades in the archive, from the 1900s to the 1990s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1900s–1910s4 items
John H. Hogan - Oroville and Marysville Stagecoachc. 1900John H. Hogan - Oroville and Marysville StagecoachJohn H. Hogan - Studio Portrait of Woman (Possibly Vesta Kelly)c. 1905John H. Hogan - Studio Portrait of Woman (Possibly Ve…John H. Hogan - Oroville High Schoolc. 1911John H. Hogan - Oroville High SchoolOroville High School1911Oroville High School
1920s–1980snothing yet
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
Add from your album
1990s1 item
Oroville Municipal Airport CA 18 August 19981998Oroville Municipal Airport CA 18 August 1998
Today15 recent
The yacht basin on Lake Oroville, above the city of the same name. The reservoir was created by damming the Feather Riv…2012The yacht basin on Lake Oroville, above the city of t…The "new" (1967) Bidwell Bar bridge carrying traffic on California Rt. 162 across Lake Oroville, a manmade reservoir cr…2012The "new" (1967) Bidwell Bar bridge carrying traffic …The "new" (1967) Bidwell Bar bridge carrying traffic on California Rt. 162 across Lake Oroville, a manmade reservoir cr…2012The "new" (1967) Bidwell Bar bridge carrying traffic …Michelle and Bill Gentry (and their four-legged friend) cross the original Bidwell Bar Bridge over Lake Oroville, a man…2012Michelle and Bill Gentry (and their four-legged frien…This temple, in the Butte County seat of Oroville, was built in 1863 to serve the largest community of Chinese north of…2012This temple, in the Butte County seat of Oroville, wa…The old, stone tollhouse at the original Bidwell Bar Bridge over Lake Oroville, a manmade reservoir created by the damm…2012The old, stone tollhouse at the original Bidwell Bar …The Lake Oroville yacht basin at dusk2012The Lake Oroville yacht basin at duskThe original Bidwell Bar Bridge over Lake Oroville, a manmade reservoir created by the damming of the Feather River abo…2012The original Bidwell Bar Bridge over Lake Oroville, a…The original Bidwell Bar Bridge over Lake Oroville, a manmade reservoir created by the damming of the Feather River abo…2012The original Bidwell Bar Bridge over Lake Oroville, a…The original Bidwell Bar Bridge over Lake Oroville, a manmade reservoir created by the damming of the Feather River abo…2012The original Bidwell Bar Bridge over Lake Oroville, a…The original Bidwell Bar Bridge over Lake Oroville, a manmade reservoir created by the damming of the Feather River abo…2012The original Bidwell Bar Bridge over Lake Oroville, a…The original Bidwell Bar Bridge over Lake Oroville, a manmade reservoir created by the damming of the Feather River abo…2012The original Bidwell Bar Bridge over Lake Oroville, a…The original Bidwell Bar Bridge over Lake Oroville, a manmade reservoir created by the damming of the Feather River abo…2012The original Bidwell Bar Bridge over Lake Oroville, a…On a '62 Lark2011On a '62 LarkLesser Goldfinch - Flickr - GregTheBusker (1)2010Lesser Goldfinch - Flickr - GregTheBusker (1)
Then & now

Stand where they stood

No then-and-now pairs yet. Take a photo from the same spot as an old one and they appear here side by side.

John H. Hogan - Oroville and Marysville Stagecoach
Retake this viewJohn H. Hogan - Oroville and Marysville Stagecoach, c. 1900

Find the spot, match the angle, and add your photo. It becomes the first then-and-now pair on Oroville’s page.

Retake this view · +15
On the National Register

5 historic places in Oroville

The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.

places listed
5
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
21
each building in a district counts
first listed
1976
Oroville Chinese Temple
Oroville Chinese Temple, built 1863US Post Office-Oroville MainState TheatreOroville Carnegie Library, built 1912Oroville Commercial District (old)
Buildings

Architectural styles listings

Federal1
Late 19th and Early 20th Century Revivals1
Classical Revival1
Oroville Chinese TempleBuilt 1863
US Post Office-Oroville MainFederal
State TheatreLate 19th and Early 20th Century Revivals
Oroville Carnegie LibraryClassical Revival · Built 1912
All 5 listings
Oroville Commercial District (old)Building · listed 1983

National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.

Famous people

15 famous people were born in Oroville

Writers, athletes, leaders and more, ranked by how widely they’re known.

See all →
Doug LaMalfaAmerican politician and businessman · b. 1960
Jack YermanAmerican sprinter · b. 1939
Robert H. YoungUnited States Army Medal of Honor recipient · b. 1929
R
Rocky SmithBasketball player · b. 1954
B
Barbara SaltBritish diplomat · b. 1904
Dave HudgensAmerican baseball player and coach · b. 1956
Places that used to be

Old corners, places now gone and burying grounds

Oroville’s post office has been open since 1854.

Hamlets and corners on the map
South OrovilleYuman
Gone or out of use
Oroville Army Air FieldmilitaryOroville Public Librarybuilding
2cemeteries and burying grounds inside Oroville
Butte CountyOroville

US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

Help out

Finish Oroville’s story

Most archives stop around 1920. The photos from after that are in family albums, not libraries.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
3 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Retake an old viewJohn H. Hogan - Oroville and Marysville…: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
Stories next door

History across the town line

Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.

Oroville EastIts storyDThermalitoIts storyCSouth OrovilleIts storyCPalermo1 historic placeC+

Questions about Oroville’s history

What year was Oroville founded?

The Oroville post office opened in 1854, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

How does Oroville rank for history?

Oroville is more historic than 69% of U.S. towns, #59 of 847 in California. The History grade combines the town’s founding era, the share of homes built before 1940 and its National Register listings. It’s a character grade, so it isn’t part of the overall grade. How it works.

What is on the National Register in Oroville?

5 listings: 5 buildings, among them the Oroville Chinese Temple (listed 1976, the first). 21 historic buildings in all.

How old are the homes in Oroville?

15% of Oroville’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±3.0 points), against a typical 3.4% for a California town; the median home was built in 1967.

Memory lane

What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.

Town Square →
Start a conversation
Sources

Where this page comes from

Founding dates: Wikidata, Wikipedia, the U.S. post office records of Blevins & Helbock (CC0) and the Census. Homes by year built: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register of Historic Places: National Park Service (list of May 22, 2026). Old photos, postcards and papers: Wikimedia Commons, the Library of Congress and other public archives, credited on each item’s page. Maps: U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (via Esri) and Sanborn fire-insurance maps (Library of Congress). History text and census tables: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Places that used to be: USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

From Wikimedia Commons (6), the Library of Congress (14), Wikidata (2), the National Register of Historic Places (5), Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia), the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock), the USGS Geographic Names Information System and Sanborn fire insurance maps (Library of Congress). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.