Lassen County ( ) is a county located in the northeastern portion of the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 32,730,. Its county seat and the largest city is Susanville.
Lassen County comprises the Susanville, California micropolitan statistical area. A former farming, mining, and lumber area, its economy now depends on employment at one federal and two state prisons; the former in Herlong and the latter two in Susanville. In 2007, half the adults in Susanville worked in one of the facilities. from parts of Plumas and Shasta counties following the two-day conflict known as the Sagebrush War, also called the Roop County War, that started on Sunday morning, February 15, 1863. Due to uncertainties over the California border, the area that is now Lassen County was part of the unofficial Nataqua Territory and Roop County, Nevada, during the late 1850s and early 1860s.
The county was named by California after Peter Lassen, along with Lassen Peak, which is in adjoining Shasta County. Lassen was one of General John C. Fremont's guides, and a famous trapper, frontiersman, and Indian fighter. He was murdered under mysterious circumstances near the Black Rock Desert in 1859, and his murder was never solved.
By the 1880s small towns began to spring up all over Lassen County. Bieber developed at the north end of the county, in rich farmland. Gold was discovered at Hayden Hill, and the small town developed to support the miners. Hayden Hill no longer exists: when the mining stopped, the townspeople left for other communities. Madeline was formed at the north end of another rich farming valley, and along the railroad tracks heading north to Alturas, California. This community still has about 50 people living in and around the town. In the 1890s many immigrant family groups arrived in the county, primarily coming from Lincolnshire and Herefordshire, England as well as the towns of Belgrade, Novi Sad, Niš and Kragujevac in Serbia. Several "Yankee" settlers arrived from Waldo County, Maine and Lincoln County, Maine as well.
During World War I, the area was heavily in favor of American entry into the war, and a disproportionate amount of volunteers from Lassen County signed up to take part in the war effort. A pro-German newspaper editor from San Francisco noted that "the inhabitants of Lassen County" were "sympathetic to Britain, hostile to Germany, and indifferent to France."
A narrow gauge railroad, the Nevada-California-Oregon Railway, ran through Lassen County from 1880 to 1927. The NCOR was the longest small gauge of the century. It was intended to connect Reno, Nevada, to the Columbia River, but only of track were laid, from Reno to Lakeview, Oregon.
In 1913, the Fernley & Lassen Railroad was built and it was used to export timber from the large forests of Lassen County. As this railroad was completed, the Red River Lumber Company set up shop, Sierra Pacific chose to close the mill permanently rather than spend the several million dollars required to convert the mill from large to small timber.
Since the late 20th century, three prisons have been opened in and near Susanville: California Correctional Center (minimum security, 1963) and High Desert State Prison (California) (maximum security, 1995), both in the city; and the nearby Federal Correctional Institution, Herlong (opened 2007). In 2007, half the adults in Susanville worked in one of the three prisons.
Education
Lassen County is served by Lassen Community College, Lassen High School District, Mt. Lassen Charter School, Thompson Peak Charter School, Diamond Mountain Charter High, Diamond View Middle School, Herlong High School, Meadow View Elementary, McKinley Elementary, Long Valley Charter School, Fort Sage Charter School, and Westwood Junior Senior High School.
Geography
thumb|Hog Flat Reservoir covered in snow during early April
According to the United States Census Bureau, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (3.79%) is water. It is the 8th largest county in California by total area. Part of Lassen Volcanic National Park extends onto a western corner of the county.
Adjacent counties
- Modoc County – north
- Washoe County, Nevada – east
- Sierra County – southeast
- Plumas County – south
- Shasta County – west
National protected areas
- Lassen National Forest (part)
- Lassen Volcanic National Park (part)
- Modoc National Forest (part)
- Plumas National Forest (part)
- Toiyabe National Forest (part)
Demographics
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Lassen County is in . is in the 1st Senate District, represented by Republican Megan Dahle, and .
Crime
The following table includes the number of incidents reported and the rate per 1,000 persons for each type of offense.
{| class="wikitable collapsible collapsed"
|-
! colspan="3" | Population and crime rates
|-
! scope="row" style="text-align: left;" | Population
| 96 || 2.74
|-
! scope="row" style="text-align: left;" | Homicide
| 229 || 6.54
|-
! scope="row" style="text-align: left;" | Motor vehicle theft
! data-sort-type="number" | Violent crimes In 2019 it had 42 employees, and the General Manager was Doug C. Smith. It is powered in part by the Honey Lake biomass power plant, which runs on wood waste from the nearby Lassen National Forest. The Whaleback Fire caused a significant outage in 2018.
Communities
City
- Susanville (county seat)
Census-designated places
- Bieber
- Clear Creek
- Doyle
- Herlong
- Janesville
- Johnstonville
- Litchfield
- Little Valley
- Madeline
- Milford
- Nubieber
- Patton Village
- Spaulding
- Stones Landing
- Westwood
Unincorporated communities
- Ravendale
- Standish
- Termo
- Wendel
Population ranking
The population ranking of the following table is based on the 2020 census of Lassen County.
† county seat
{| class="wikitable sortable"
|-
!Rank
!City/Town/etc.
!Municipal type
!Population (2020 Census)
|- style="background-color:#FFFACD;"
| 1
|† Susanville
| City
| 16,728
|- style="background-color:#F0FFF0;"
| 2
|Janesville
| CDP
| 2,461
|- style="background-color:#F0FFF0;"
| 3
|Westwood
| CDP
| 1,541
|- style="background-color:#F0FFF0;"
| 4
|Johnstonville
| CDP
| 973
|- style="background-color:#F0FFF0;"
| 5
|Patton Village
| CDP
| 632
|- style="background-color:#FFFF99;"
| 6
|Susanville Indian Rancheria
| AIAN
| 570
|- style="background-color:#F0FFF0;"
| 7
|Doyle
| CDP
| 536
|- style="background-color:#F0FFF0;"
| 8
|Bieber
| CDP
| 266
|- style="background-color:#F0FFF0;"
| 9
|Herlong
| CDP
| 237
|- style="background-color:#F0FFF0;"
| 10
|Spaulding
| CDP
| 206
|- style="background-color:#F0FFF0;"
| 11
|Clear Creek
| CDP
| 175
|- style="background-color:#F0FFF0;"
| 12
|Litchfield
| CDP
| 160
|- style="background-color:#F0FFF0;"
| 13
|Milford
| CDP
| 147
|- style="background-color:#F0FFF0;"
| 14
|Stones Landing
| CDP
| 86
|- style="background-color:#F0FFF0;"
| 15
|Little Valley
| CDP
| 84
|- style="background-color:#F0FFF0;"
| 16
|Madeline
| CDP
| 21
|- style="background-color:#F0FFF0;"
| 17
|Nubieber
| CDP
| 19
|}
See also
- National Register of Historic Places listings in Lassen County, California
Notes
References
External links
- Lassen County Times newspaper
- Lassen County History and Culture