BlockBefore

Helltown, California

26 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1891 and the latest in 1980. It stands in the Paradise census division. It lies in ZIP code area 95942. The Survey maps it on the Paradise West quadrangle. It stands 873 feet above sea level.

Helltown within Butte County

Then and now

1891 to 1980

The same ground, surveyed 89 years apart. Drag the handle to wipe between them. Both sheets are United States Geological Survey originals; neither has been altered.

Topographic sheet of Helltown, surveyed 1980
Topographic sheet of Helltown, surveyed 1891

Compare 1891 against another survey:

Topographic sheets covering this place

8 surveys from 26 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

693 since 1992

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 693 fires within 5 miles of Helltown between 1992 and 2020, burning about 17,396 acres in total. 14 started naturally. 114 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/undetermined242
Equipment and vehicle use125
Arson/incendiarism114
Debris and open burning101
Misuse of fire by a minor48
Smoking21
Power generation/transmission/distribution16
Natural14
Recreation and ceremony9
Fireworks2
Other causes1

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 2002Equipment and vehicle use5.0 acresNorthern California DistrictNIMSHEW
8 September 2007Missing data/not specified/undetermined1.0 acresNorthern California DistrictUNNAMED FIRE 3610
8 September 2002Equipment and vehicle useunder an acreNorthern California DistrictRAMBLING
8 September 2001Power generation/transmission/distributionunder an acreNorthern California DistrictSTEIFFER
7 September 2006Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreNorthern California DistrictCARNEGIE
7 September 1999Arson/incendiarismunder an acreNorthern California DistrictPINES
6 September 2011Missing data/not specified/undetermined1.0 acresButte UnitDOGTOWN
6 September 2007Smokingunder an acreCalifornia Department of Forestry & Fire Protectionnot named

Settlements close enough to share some of these fires:

Every fire recorded in Butte County

Mines and quarries near this place

10 of 79 shown

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 79 workings within 5 miles of Helltown: 30 past producers, 23 unknowns, 21 occurrences, 5 producers. 5 still produce. What was taken out: Gold, Silver, Chromium, Sand and Gravel, Construction. 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
Mineral Slide DepositIron, Manganese, ChromiumOccurrenceVein
NimshewGold, PlatinumProducer1848
S and DGold, Copper, SilverPast Producer
Kemen Gravel PitSand and Gravel, ConstructionUnknown
Kennedy Gravel PitSand and Gravel, ConstructionUnknown
Sake and Sanders Rock PitSand and Gravel, ConstructionPast ProducerSedimentary
Sake and Sanders Rock PitSand and Gravel, ConstructionPast Producer
HelmkeChromiumUnknown
Helmke OccurrenceChromiumPast ProducerChromite
Lambert MineChromiumPast Producer1917

Every working 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
Centerville1.7 miles26
Irish Town1.8 miles26
Mineral Slide2.8 miles24
Nimshew3.1 miles24
Paradise Pines3.6 miles24
Paradise4.1 miles24
Magalia4.3 miles24
Forest Ranch4.9 miles27

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 HelltownAn encyclopaedic summary. Its text is share-alike, so it is linked here rather than copied.
Wikidata item Q5709055The 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 1658734. 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.