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Tehama County

  • Tehama County Tuff (historical times through circa 1906) – Excerpt from The Structural and Industrial Materials of California, Bulletin No. 38, California, State Mining Bureau, San Francisco, California, 1906.

    “About 20 miles west of Red Bluff, between Thomas and Elder Creek, there is a considerable exposure of a light reddish tuff, which Mr. Diller in Bulletin 196, U.S. Geological Survey, page 39, refers to the Tuscan tuffs. The tuff is very soft, can be cut with a saw, and resists exposure and heat very well; it is used all through the vicinity for building purposes, especially chimneys, etc.”

  • Tehama, County, California, Mineral Resources & Introduction to the Tehama County Area of California (circa 1915) – Excerpt from Sacramento Valley and Foothill Counties of California: An Illustrated Description of all the Counties Embraced in this Richly productive Geographical Subdivision of the Golden State, compiled and edited by Emmett Phillips and John H. Miller, Published under the direction of The Sacramento Valley Exposition, J. A. Filcher, Director-in Chief, January, 1915.

    Tehama County

    “Stretching across the great Sacramento Valley from the Sierra Nevada Mountains on the east to the Coast Range on the west, lies Tehama County. Within its boundaries are 2,893 square miles, and it is about twice as large as Delaware and three times as large as Rhode Island. It has a diversified topography, ranging from river bottom lands to high mountains.

    “The county is bisected by the Sacramento River, which crosses it from north to south. On both sides of the river beyond the river bottoms are great areas of table lands, locally called bench lands, which, when irrigated, are unexcelled for the production of deciduous and citrus fruits, berries, nuts, etc. Water is plentiful for irrigation, both by gravity canals and from wells. During recent years a number of wells have been sunk and it has been ascertained that at depths ranging from 20 to 250 feet, a bountiful supply of pure water is to be had.

    “Tehama County is now attracting great attention. In former years most of the agricultural land in the county was held in great acres and farmed to grain or used for stock raising. For that reason, Tehama County has always been an important grain and wool center. In recent years, however, some of these great tracts have been broken up and are now being subdivided into small farms. Scientific methods of soil culture are being introduced and the county is undergoing a change. The great farms of 10,000 or more acres will soon pass forever from view and in their places will be hundreds of small tracts devoted to the culture of alfalfa, fruit, poultry, truck gardening, berries, etc. As forerunners to the new era are the prosperous colonies of Corning and Los Molinos, where there are hundreds of new settlers making good on their recent purchases.

    “The fruit industry in Tehama gives employment to a large number of persons during the season and the annual value of the crop exceeds $1,000,000. The bulk of the deciduous fruit crop is dried, although many carloads are shipped to Eastern markets in the fresh state. One of the best paying Bartlett pear ranches in California is on the Cone ranch, near Red Bluff. Peaches are also grown extensively and profitably, as are prunes and apricots. Since the introduction of the blastophaga in California, the insect which fertilizes the Smyrna fig, the culture of figs promises to become a paying industry. Almonds are produced and in twenty years in which they have been grown in the county, there has never been a total crop failure. Walnuts are also a paying crop.

    “Oranges and lemons do well and bear abundantly. The olive is also in great favor as a crop, especially in the vicinity of Corning, where there is a large pickling plant and oil factory. Apples are grown in the foothills. At Manton, thirty-five miles northeast of Red Bluff, the county seat, very fine apples are grown.

    “Grain is still produced in great quantities. Wheat, barley and oats are produced and much hay is grown.

    “Dairying is becoming an important industry and the opportunities along this line are hardly touched. Alfalfa grows abundantly and is the best food for dairy cows. There are several creameries in the county, which take the cream output from the farmers, paying cash for the product.

    “Beef cattle and sheep are raised extensively, the grazing land being the finest. The ranges on the hill slopes provide excellent feed all during the Summer and Fall months.

    “Tehama County has always attracted attention of the officials of the United States Reclamation Service because it holds the key to irrigation of thousands of acres of Sacramento Valley lands. In the Sacramento River just above Red Bluff is Iron Canyon, a natural dam site, where it is proposed to erect a dam for the purpose of storing sufficient water to irrigate much of the Sacramento Valley lands. The proposition is now being investigated by the Government.

    The main line of the Oregon and California branch of the Southern Pacific Railroad passes through Tehama County, affording the best of rail transportation facilities. The West Side Electric Railway now being built will have its northern terminal at Red Bluff. The State Highway passes through the county, connecting principal communities, and the Sacramento river is navigable for trade boats as far north as Red Bluff.

    “The natural scenery of the county is beautiful. Red Bluff is one of the starting points for tourists who visit Mt. Lassen, an active volcano, which has been in a state of eruption at various intervals since June, 1914. Although the slopes of Mt. Lassen extend into Tehama County, the peak is just beyond the borders of Shasta County .

    “Game is plentiful in the foothill and mountain sections and all the streams are stocked with trout.

    “Tehama County has good district schools and two excellent high schools – one at Red Bluff and one at Corning – where students are prepared for the universities.

    “Red Bluff, the county seat and largest city, is an attractive place with many pretty homes. It is a business center, being the clearing house through which most of the products of the county are marketed and the supply point for a large territory. It has wide streets, is well lighted and well drained. It has two fruit packing establishments, a creamery, three newspapers, several banks, large lumber yards and other important industries.

    “Corning, the second city in size, is incorporated. It is the center of a prosperous farming colony. Fruit growing and poultry raiding are its chief industries. Corning is destined to be the center of one of the greatest olive growing districts in California. A large pickling and olive oil plant has been established by H. G. Heinz at Corning .

    “Tehama, at the junction of the two lines of the Southern Pacific Railroad, is in the center of a rich farming section.

    “Other towns in the county are Los Molinos, Vina, where the farm of the Stanford University is located, Paskenta, Henleyville, Manton, Lyonsville, Kirkwood, Proberta and Red Bank.

    “The climate of Tehama is temperate. The Winters are mild, snow seldom falling except in the mountains. While the temperature sometimes exceeds 100 degrees in Summer, the heat is dry and not oppressive. It is the kind of heat that ripens the fruit crop and puts profits in the pockets of the farmers.”

  • Tehama County Mines and Mineral Resources (circa 1915-1916) (Excerpts from Report XV of the State Mineralogist, Mines and Mineral Resources of Portions of California, Chapters of State Mineralogist’s Report Biennial Period 1915-1916, Part II. The Counties of Butte, Lassen, Modoc, Sutter and Tehama, California State Mining Bureau, 1919, pp. 181-266. Used with permission, California Department of Conservation, California Geological Survey.)

    Tehama County, by W. Burling Tucker, Field Assistant. Field work in September, 1915.

    Description (of Tehama County).

    “Tehama County is situated in the upper part of the Sacramento Valley. It extends east to the summit of the Sierras, on the west to the crest of the Coast Range Mountains. The county itself comprises an area of 2893 square miles and is about evenly divided on both sides of the Sacramento River. For nearly 50 miles this river wends its way through the center of the county.

    “Rising in the Sierra Nevadas and flowing westward into the Sacramento River are Los Molinos River, Deer, Antelope, Paynes, and Battle creeks – all perennial streams, and supplying unlimited water for irrigation purposes.

    “Starting in the Coast Range Mountains and running eastward into the Sacramento River are Cottonwood, Elder, and Toms creeks. The town of Red Bluff, the county seat, lies at the head of river navigation on the Sacramento. The county comprises valley, foothill, and mountain lands, used principally for agricultural, horticultural, and grazing purposes.

    “The eastern and western portions of the county are covered with extensive growths of fine timber, the lumber, industry being an important source of revenue.

    Geology (of Tehama County).

    “The eastern half of the county is covered with sheets of lava, which had their origin from and around Lassen Peak. The central part of the county shows an extended plateau of gravels, sands and clays, which extend to the serpentines and metamorphic rocks of the Coast Range.

    Mining (in Tehama County).

    “Little mining is being done in this county at present (ca 1915). Chromite, iron, indications of oil, coal, copper and manganese occur in the western part of the county….”

    Mineral Resources (in Tehama County).

    “Among the mineral resources of the county are: brick, chromite, copper, gold, manganese, marble, mineral water, salt, silver, and the stone industry.

    In the table on page 259 entitled, “Tehama County – Table of Mineral Production,” the amounts for the value of stone in 1913 was $600, and the value for stone in 1915 was $750, bringing the total for the Tehama County Stone industry of $1,350. (The table begins in 1880, but stone is not listed until the 1913 information.)

  • Tehama County Mineral Industry (circa 1919) – Excerpt from California Mineral Production for 1919, Bulletin No. 88, by Walter W. Bradley, California State Mining Bureau, 1920, pp. 168-169.
    Area: 2,893 square miles.
    Population: 12,822 (1920 census).
    Location: North-central portion of the state, bounded on the north by Shasta.

    “Tehama stands fifty-second among the fifty-six mineral-producing counties of the state for 1919, when its output was valued at 9,000, as compared with the 1918 yield worth $157,591. The advance in 1918 and the drop in 1919 was due to chromite.

    “Among its mineral resources are listed: Brick, chromite, copper, gold, manganese, marble, mineral water, salt, and miscellaneous stone.

    “Commercial production for 1919 was as follows:

    (Headings for the information below are: Substance, Amount, and Value.)

    Stone, miscellaneous, —, $7,500
    Other minerals, ---, $1,500
    (Total value) $9,000
    Tehama County , 1916 Map, from California Mineral Production for 1919 (with County Maps), Bulletin No. 88, by Walter W. Bradley, California State Mining Bureau, San Francisco: California State Printing Office, 1920, pp. 183. Tehama County , 1916 Map

Tehama County – List of Quarries, Etc. *

(* Please note this list does not include sand or gravel quarries.)

  • Headquarters Creek, Tehama County, California – the Rice Quarry (From The Structural and Industrial Materials of California, Bulletin No. 38, California, State Mining Bureau, San Francisco, California, 1906.)

    “Rice Quarry, in Sec. 12, T. 24 N., R. 6 W., M. D. M.; H. W. Rice, Paskenta, owner; a small quarry on Headquarters Creek.”

  • Tehama County, California – Carmichael Rock Quarry (Stone) (active ca 1996) (From Mines and Mineral Producers Active in California (1994-1995), Special Publication 103 (Revised 1996), California Department of Conservation, Division of Mines and Geology, in cooperation with California Department of Conservation, Office of Mine Reclamation. Used with permission, California Department of Conservation, California Geological Survey.)

    Mine name: Carmichael Rock Quarry; Operator: Carl J. Woods Construction Co.; Address & County: P. O. Drawer “M,” Yuba City, CA 95992, Tehama Count ; Phone: (916) 673-7877; Latitude: 40.02, Longitude: -121.96, and Mine location number: Map No. 834; Mineral commodity: Stone.

  • Tehama County, California – Dye Creek Quarry (Stone) (active ca 1996) (From Mines and Mineral Producers Active in California (1994-1995), Special Publication 103 (Revised 1996), California Department of Conservation, Division of Mines and Geology, in cooperation with California Department of Conservation, Office of Mine Reclamation. Used with permission, California Department of Conservation, California Geological Survey.)

    Mine name: Dye Creek Quarry; Operator: Nordic Industries, Inc.; Address & County: 1437 Furneaux Rd., Marysville, AA 95901, Tehama County; Phone: (916) 742-7124; Latitude: 40.31, Longitude: -122.11, and Mine location number: Map No. 839; Mineral commodity: Stone.

  • Tehama County, California – Long RL Quarry (Stone) (active ca 1996) (From Mines and Mineral Producers Active in California (1994-1995), Special Publication 103 (Revised 1996), California Department of Conservation, Division of Mines and Geology, in cooperation with California Department of Conservation, Office of Mine Reclamation. Used with permission, California Department of Conservation, California Geological Survey.)

    Mine name: Long RL Quarry; Operator: Mendenhall Brothers Quarries; Address & County: 653 Lincoln St., Red Bluff, CA 96080, Tehama County; Phone: (916) 528-0926; Latitude: 40.38, Longitude: -122.00, and Mine location number: Map No. 848; Mineral commodity: Stone.

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