BlockBefore

Big Bend, California

28 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1888 and the latest in 1994. It stands in the Feather Falls census division. It lies in ZIP code area 95965. It stands on Nolton Creek. The Survey maps it on the Berry Creek quadrangle. It stands 2,310 feet above sea level.

Big Bend within Butte County

Then and now

1888 to 1994

The same ground, surveyed 106 years apart. Drag the handle to wipe between them. Both sheets are United States Geological Survey originals; neither has been altered.

Topographic sheet of Big Bend, surveyed 1994
Topographic sheet of Big Bend, surveyed 1888

Compare 1888 against another survey:

Topographic sheets covering this place

13 surveys from 28 printed sheets

Matched 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.

Fires near this place

277 since 1992

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 277 fires within 5 miles of Big Bend between 1992 and 2020, burning about 16,185 acres in total. 30 started naturally. 29 were 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
Missing data/not specified/undetermined77
Equipment and vehicle use69
Debris and open burning49
Natural30
Arson/incendiarism29
Power generation/transmission/distribution8
Misuse of fire by a minor5
Recreation and ceremony4
Railroad operations and maintenance3
Smoking2
Fireworks1

The most recent of them, most recent first, with the day each was reported and the service that recorded it.

DateCause SizeReported by Name on the report
9 September 1995Equipment and vehicle useunder an acreButte UnitFUNES
8 September 1993Equipment and vehicle use3.0 acresPlumas National ForestMALCOLM
6 September 2008Equipment and vehicle use3.8 acresButte UnitMEADOW
6 September 2001Missing data/not specified/undetermined8,333 acresButte UnitPOE
6 September 2001Power generation/transmission/distribution50 acresNorthern California DistrictBTU POE
6 September 1996Equipment and vehicle useunder an acreButte UnitKUKRAL
5 September 2009Missing data/not specified/undetermined1.0 acresButte UnitDETLOW
30 September 2018Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreCalifornia Department of Forestry & Fire ProtectionSURCEASE

Settlements close enough to share some of these fires:

Every fire recorded in Butte County

Mines and quarries near this place

10 of 80 shown

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 80 workings within 5 miles of Big Bend: 30 occurrences, 30 past producers, 12 unknowns, 5 producers. 5 still produce. What was taken out: Gold, Chromium, Silver, Stone, Crushed/Broken. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a quarry counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.

Where SiteCommodity StatusRecorded
Big BendCopper, Zinc, Gold, Silver, LeadPast ProducerReplacement
Big BendGold, Copper, Silver, ZincPast Producer
Big Bend Marble QuarryLimestone, Dimension, Marble, DimensionPast Producer
Bloomer HillGold, CopperOccurrenceReplacement
Pinkston MineGold, Zinc, Barium-Barite, CopperPast ProducerBarite, Gold, Pyrite, Sphalerite
PoeLimestone, GeneralPast ProducerSedimentary
Reported CollectionGemstoneUnknown
SurceaseGold, Copper, Lead, Silver, ZincUnknown
Surcease Bunker Hill and Treasure HillSilver, Zinc, Lead, Gold, CopperProducer
Surcease MineGold, Silver, Copper, Lead, Antimony, IronPast ProducerAntimony, Bornite, Bournonite, Chalcopyrite, Covellite, Galena, Gold, Limonite, Marcasite, Pyrrhotite

Every working recorded in Butte County

Storms near this place

4 since 2012

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Big Bend in 4 storm reports between 2012 and 2023: 3 flood, 1 debris flow. No death or injury is recorded in these reports. Each account below is quoted exactly as the forecast office filed it, from the NOAA Storm Events Database, and each date opens the federal record of that event.

WhenEvent Place namedHarm What the report says
February 2017FloodBig Bend$2,370,000HWY 70 was closed from Jarbo Gap in Butte County to Greenville Wye in Plumas County due to flooding.
January 2023FloodBig Bend-Caltrans District 2 reported State Route 70 is closed from Jarbo Gap to the Greenville WYE due to a slide.
September 2019Debris FlowBig Bend-Minor debris and rock slides blocked highway 70 from Jarbo Gap to Greenville Way (Junction of state route 70 and state route 89). Road culverts were blocked with debris requiring lane closures. The debris flow is associated with the Camp Fire burn area.
December 2012FloodBig Bend-A series of consecutive heavy rainfall events caused local flooding due to ground saturation and steep terrain. California Highway Patrol indicated that SR70 was closed from the Jarbo Gap area to Greenville along the Feather River due to extremely heavy rains and run off from the steep terrain. Damage was reported for the roadway and possibly to the bridge. Closure began at Big Bend Road on SR70 in area indicated.

Every storm recorded in Butte County

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 PlaceDistance Sheets
David (historical)1.3 miles28
Pipers (historical)1.6 miles28
Isaiah (historical)1.7 miles28
Las Plumas (historical)2.2 miles28
New Blinzing (historical)2.5 miles28
Parkhill2.5 miles28
Blinzing (historical)2.7 miles28
Brush (historical)2.9 miles28

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.

Wikipedia article on Big BendAn encyclopaedic summary. Its text is share-alike, so it is linked here rather than copied.
Wikidata item Q4905085The 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 1658048. 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.

Storms. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/stormevents/ A work of the United States government, no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105. Narratives are quoted verbatim from the National Weather Service report and are not edited or summarised.