Plumas County is a county located in California's Sierra Nevada. The county gets its name from the Spanish words for the Feather River (Rio de las Plumas), which flows through the county. As of 2000, the population is 20,824. The county seat is Quincy. The only incorporated city in the county is Portola.

Plumas County was formed from parts of Butte County in 1854. Parts of the county's territory were given to Lassen County in 1864.The Spanish originally called one of the tributaries of the Sacramento River El Rio de las Plumas or the "River of Feathers." The Legislature, in creating this county, gave it the name "Plumas" because all of the numerous branches of the Feather River have their origins in its mountains.

Prayer Focus for Plumas County:

The Unity in the Church would continue and increase, pastors and intercessors from many churches working together.

The Tyranny of Abuse would be broken: especially sexual abuse, domestic violence and spiritual abuse.

Reconciliation between the Church and the First Nations people would continue and there would be a great Harvest as a result.

Repentance to go deeper: The repentance for all sin done by all people through the ages here would begin in the Church and create an atmosphere for a great Revival in the Mountain Regions.

A Breaking of Generational Poverty: There would be a breakthrough for many and a setting free of generational poverty.

Call forth Righteousness in the Justice System: Righteous judges, police departments, sheriff and other justice workers would rise up in the mountain areas and true justice would be restored.

Continued Prayer mobilization in all the cities. Pray for leaders' encouragement to pray and witness in the public square more and more.

Blessing upon the all industry and commerce for the fear of God to attend the tourism industry and for godly leaders in governmental offices.

Revival for the Churches and a Spiritual Awakening to Christ in the cities.

Decrease in unemployment and the creation of new jobs. Pray for a release of entrepreneurial energy that leads to the creation of new businesses that are sustainable.

Pray for Christian marriages to be a witness of life in Christ. Pray for marriage to be affirmed and protected in this Counties’ Cities.

Passion for Prayer: Pray God will rise up prayer leaders in this county.

Pray for God to break the power of occultism: Ask God to break the strongholds of occultism/witchcraft through a revelation of His love & salvation to those involved in occult practices.

History of Quincy, California

One of the first men to settle in American Valley, which now embraces Quincy, was John Bradley from Quincy, Ill. It was this man who named the town of Quincy after his hometown in Illinois. His home became such a haven to travelers that he soon converted it into a hotel that he called the American House. Bradley's hotel location drew other settlers and homes as well as stores and a church.

Among the first settlers in American Valley were the occupants of the covered wagon train that arrived during the summer of 1852. A majority stayed to become permanent residents. Many of their descendents are here today.

Several ranches, which still operate within their original acreage, were located during these early years. Some of the old ranches and their present owners are: The Illinois Ranch, 1851, now owned by Ramelli, the New England Ranch, 1852, Now owned by John M. Galeppi, the Uncle Sam Ranch, 1852, now owned by A. P. Bresciani, the Weldon Ranch, 1855, owned by Leonhardt, the Yeates Ranch, 1862, now owned by L. Mc Williams, the Billy Johnson Ranch, 1870, now owned by A.C. Jeskey, and the Hedrick Ranch, 1913, belongs now to C.T. Bedell.

Before the gold rush, a tribe of Indians called the Maidus inhabited American Valley. Complied history estimates approximately 125 Indians formed this tribe living in American Valley. A group of the Maidu would claim a certain territory in common, Knowing themselves as a group they acted largely as a unit but resided in several settlements. The different settlements in American Valley were villages of Omhilibe, Silo-ngkoyo, Opule, Salk ini, Piteli, and Bumi.

The Maidu chose a head-man or "Chief" for his wisdom and popularity. He did not receive more than an average share of food. He could be deposed whenever he became unsatisfactory to the majority. After the discovery of gold, the sudden contact with the civilization of the mining camps quickly produced its usual effects; and by drink and disease the villages were rapidly depleted.

Gold was discovered on the Feather River at Bidwell Bar in the spring of 1849 and it was natural that hardy prospectors would follow the river into the Sierras.

The River that was to bring the first settlers to Plumas County was first discovered in 1820 Don Luis A. Arguello, a Spanish explorer who found quantities of wild pigeon feathers floating on the surface and therefore named it Rio de las Plumas or River of the Feathers. Plumas County derived its name from the river.
While gold first opened this area, lumbering soon became a leading industry. Mining settlements found a need for lumber to build homes, for the endless miles of flumes, ditches and wing dams.

During the winter of 1852-53, Cate, Judkins and Boyington built the first mill in the Quincy area. Other water powered mills were constructed in the following years to meet the growing demands of the community. Ox and mule teams gave way to trucks and tractors in the late 1930,s as water powered mills bowed to steam and electricity, paving the way for Quincy's modern band mills. Lumbering remains a main source of economy to the Quincy area.

The Quincy Western Railway made its first runs with freights and passengers on June 15, 1910. The short line railroad is one of the smallest in the nation, with 5,368 miles of main line.

Although Quincy and the entire county had been connected to the outside world only by an unpredictable wagon road to Oroville for 85 years, with the coming of the Western Pacific, 6 miles was too far for Quincy residents to travel in 1908. The year Western Pacific announced that their route would be through the Feather River Canyon, but to comply with the one- percent maximum grade the railroad would bypass Quincy by about 6 miles. Rather than hitch their horses to buckboards, the citizens decided to build a railroad connecting them to the bypass. Stocks amounting to $50,000 were sold and construction began. Foreign labor was not to be used to build the road. Local residents were paid $2.50 per day and a sense of community spirit seemed to be built in the railway.

The Plumas National Forest was established in 1905, and was called the Plumas and Diamond Mountain Reserve, including what is now known as the Lassen National Forest.

CSAC Snapshot Info

Official County Website