Greenville

History

The Maidu people had been living in the valley area around present-day Greenville for centuries when English-speaking settlers arrived in the 1850s during the Gold Rush. Among the earliest structures built in the community was a boarding house operated by Mr. and Mrs. Green. The community was named for Green, who was killed in the collapse of the first Round Valley Dam. When Henry C. Bidwell arrived in 1862 and opened a trading post, several business owners moved down from Round Valley to Greenville. Since its establishment, the main industries of Greenville were mining and logging, however, by the mid 1900s, mining had declined and logging and ranching became the main industries in Greenville. In the late 1800s, the Maidu tribe were granted over 200 acres of land by the US government where a boarding school was built which burned down in the 1920s. The land was later converted into a Rancheria. Cheney Lumber Company built a wood mill near Greenville. A fire destroyed many buildings in 1881; they were quickly rebuilt. Greenville's population in 1882 was 500. the largest single (i.e. non-complex) wildfire in the state's history, and the second-largest overall (after the August Complex fire of 2020). Fire officials stated that the library, fire department, and most downtown homes were burned. The Los Angeles Times estimated that about $1 billion, through government aid, insurance payouts, lawsuits against Pacific Gas & Electric, corporate investment and philanthropic donations, has been promised, paid or will be forced to pay for the damage and rebuilding of Greenville. It is stated that nobody died in the fire. The single casualty from the incident was a firefighter who died from complications with COVID-19.

Geography

This region experiences hot and dry summers with temps as high as and cold sometimes wet winters, which can get as cold as . According to the Köppen Climate Classification system, Greenville has a warm-summer Mediterranean climate, abbreviated "Csb" on climate maps. Its winter temperatures approach that of a continental climate, and diurnal temperature variation is large, especially during summer.

Race & ethnicity

Largest nearby schools

• Greenville Elementary
  Elementary · Greenville · 91 students · 18.2:1 ratio
• Greenville Junior/Senior High
  High · Greenville · 32 students · 10.7:1 ratio