Bells Bar, California
27 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1891 and the latest in 1994. It stands in the Quincy census division. It stands on Bell Bar Creek. The Survey maps it on the Blue Nose Mountain quadrangle. It stands 4,068 feet above sea level. The federal gazetteer marks this settlement historical: it is no longer a populated place, though the surveys that recorded it still are.
Then and now
1891 to 1994The same ground, surveyed 103 years apart. Drag the handle to wipe between them. Both sheets are United States Geological Survey originals; neither has been altered.


Topographic sheets covering this place
11 surveys from 27 printed sheetsMatched by testing this settlement's coordinate against the published boundary of every sheet in the United States Geological Survey's historical collection. Each opens the scanned sheet at the Survey.
- 1891 USGS Downieville quadrangle1:125000
- 1893 USGS Downieville quadrangle1:125000
- 1895 USGS Downieville quadrangle1:125000
- 1896 USGS Downieville quadrangle1:125000
- 1897 USGS Downieville quadrangle1:125000, 7 printings
- 1951 USGS Blue Nose Mtn quadrangle1:24000, 5 printings
- 1951 USGS Quincy quadrangle1:62500, 3 printings
- 1958 USGS Chico quadrangle1:250000, 4 printings
- 1960 USGS Chico quadrangle1:250000
- 1979 USGS Portola quadrangle1:100000, 2 printings
- 1994 USGS Blue Nose Mountain quadrangle1:24000
Fires near this place
135 since 1992Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 135 fires within 5 miles of Bells Bar (historical) between 1992 and 2020, burning about 5,700 acres in total. 67 started naturally. 1 was recorded as arson. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a fire counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.
| Reported cause | Fires |
|---|---|
| Natural | 67 |
| Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 23 |
| Debris and open burning | 15 |
| Railroad operations and maintenance | 9 |
| Recreation and ceremony | 7 |
| Equipment and vehicle use | 7 |
| Smoking | 3 |
| Other causes | 2 |
| Arson/incendiarism | 1 |
| Misuse of fire by a minor | 1 |
The most recent of them, most recent first, with the day each was reported and the service that recorded it.
| Date | Cause | Size | Reported by | Name on the report |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 8 September 2012 | Smoking | under an acre | Plumas National Forest | CROSSING |
| 7 September 2019 | Equipment and vehicle use | under an acre | Plumas National Forest | GILL |
| 7 September 2003 | Natural | under an acre | Plumas National Forest | SOCKUM |
| 4 September 1997 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | under an acre | Plumas National Forest | GILL |
| 3 September 2003 | Natural | under an acre | Plumas National Forest | CAP |
| 28 September 2011 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | under an acre | Plumas National Forest | RUNNING |
| 28 September 2000 | Railroad operations and maintenance | under an acre | Plumas National Forest | SLOAT |
| 28 September 1996 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | under an acre | Plumas National Forest | POPLAR |
Settlements close enough to share some of these fires:
Mines and quarries near this place
10 of 46 shownRegional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 46 workings within 5 miles of Bells Bar (historical): 23 past producers, 10 occurrences, 7 unknowns, 4 producers. 4 still produce. What was taken out: Gold, Silver, Sand and Gravel, Construction, Asbestos. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a quarry counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.
| Where | Site | Commodity | Status | Recorded |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crisler | Manganese | Prospect | 1960 | |
| Ohio | Copper, Gold, Lead | Past Producer | ||
| Silver White Placer Claim | Limestone, Dimension | Past Producer | ||
| Spring Garden Tunnel | Asbestos | Occurrence | ||
| Sloat Mill Pit | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Producer | ||
| Sloat Pit | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Producer | ||
| De Lone | Gold, Silver | Past Producer | ||
| Greenhorn | Gold, Silver | Past Producer | ||
| Grizzly | Gold, Silver | Past Producer | ||
| Grizzly Bear | Gold, Silver | Past Producer |
Nearest settlements
The eight closest, with where each one stands in the county. Distances are straight-line, computed from the Geographic Names Information System coordinates.
| Map | Place | Distance | Sheets |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sloat | 1.3 miles | 28 | |
| Greenhorn | 2.7 miles | 27 | |
| Spring Garden | 2.7 miles | 27 | |
| Cromberg | 3.2 miles | 28 | |
| English Bar (historical) | 3.4 miles | 27 | |
| Argentine (historical) | 4.2 miles | 27 | |
| Squirrel Creek (historical) | 5.2 miles | 28 | |
| Two Rivers | 5.2 miles | 28 |
Elsewhere
Matched on this settlement's Geographic Names Information System number rather than its name, so it cannot be a different place of the same name in another state.
| Wikidata item Q4884143 | The structured record the population and elevation above come from. Public domain (CC0). |
Provenance
This settlement is recorded in the Geographic Names Information System as feature 1701337. The sheet list is computed by point-in-boundary test against the United States Geological Survey's historical topographic inventory. Both are works of the United States government and carry no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105.
Wildfire. Short, Karen C. 2022. Spatial wildfire occurrence data for the United States, 1992-2020 [FPA_FOD_20221014]. 6th Edition. Fort Collins, CO: Forest Service Research Data Archive. https://doi.org/10.2737/RDS-2013-0009.6 Collected with United States Government funding and usable without additional permissions or fees.
Mines and quarries. USGS Mineral Resources Data System (MRDS) https://mrdata.usgs.gov/mrds/ A work of the United States government, no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105.










