1895 Map of Chico

About this map

Chico serves as the central hub of this late nineteenth-century landscape, where the fertile plains meet the foothills of the Sierra Nevada. The map documents a transition from the agricultural valley floor, crisscrossed by the Southern Pacific R. R. and the San Francisco and Portland Line, to the industrial and mining activities in the eastern uplands. Settled points like Paradise, Magalia, and Cherokee highlight the area's development, while numerous timber and grain works like Keefer's Mill and Doons Mill signify the resource-driven economy of the era.