La Porte

History

At the time of statehood in 1850, La Porte was located in Yuba County, one of California's 27 original counties. In 1852, Sierra County was created from part of Yuba County. After that time, La Porte was located in Sierra County. In 1854, Plumas County was created from part of Butte County. In 1866, a further realignment placed La Porte in Plumas County, where it has remained ever since. La Porte was named Rabbit Creek until 1857. Gold was found in Rabbit Creek in 1850. It was a hub of gold mining activity and commerce in the region during the California Gold Rush. The town was largely destroyed by fires in 1855, 1861, 1868, 1871 and 1905. Rabbit Creek Hotel - Rabbit Creek House was built in 1852 by Eli S. Lester. This was the first building in Rabbit Creek. The Rabbit Creek House had a Hotel, trading post and two barns for horses. Busy during the Gold Rush, the site of the Rabbit Creek Hotel is a California Historical Landmark No. 213 at the north corner of Main Street and Church Streets. About outside La Porte, via the Port Wine Ridge Road in adjacent Sierra County, lies the remains of the former gold mining town of Howland Flat. Also on Port Wine Ridge Road, and southwest of Mount Fillmore, the ghost town of Grass Flat is located. It is the site of extensive gold rush hydraulic mining, with a dramatic and barren landscape still remaining. The ghost town of Poker Flat is located on the Poker Flat OHV trail in the Plumas National Forest. The last-standing structure of Poker Flat, the 1886 Scott House, stood until the winter of 2014–15, when it collapsed. Skiing may have been practiced in Rabbit Creek as early as 1851 by Hamilton Ward and James Murray using improvised barrel staves. In 1866 the Alturas Snowshoe Club was formed at La Porte. This longboard…

Geography

La Porte is located at (39.681908, -120.984732). According to the United States Census Bureau, the CDP has a total area of , all land. Completed in 1961, the nearby Little Grass Valley Reservoir is a popular summer water sports area. Hiking, equestrian, and OHV trails surround the lake.

Race & ethnicity

Most-observed species

• Steller's Jay

  Cyanocitta stelleri (Gmelin, 1788) · Aves
  341
• Red-breasted Nuthatch

  Sitta canadensis Linnaeus, 1766 · Aves
  251
• Dark-eyed Junco

  Junco hyemalis (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  236
• American Robin

  Turdus migratorius Linnaeus, 1766 · Aves
  228
• Mountain Chickadee

  Poecile gambeli (Ridgway, 1886) · Aves
  155
• Common Raven

  Corvus corax Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  153
• Golden-crowned Kinglet

  Regulus satrapa Lichtenstein, 1823 · Aves
  143
• Northern Flicker

  Colaptes auratus (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  141

Most recent

• M 2.72 — 2026-09-02
  5 km W of Hamilton City, CA
• M 2.54 — 2026-08-04
  15 km S of Hamilton City, CA
• M 2.56 — 2026-07-24
  8 km NE of Lake Davis, CA
• M 3.01 — 2026-06-27
  4 km WSW of Johnsville, CA
• M 3.2 — 2026-06-14
  2 km ESE of Prattville, CA
• M 2.57 — 2026-06-01
  11 km NE of Susanville, CA