Centerville
Butte Creek Canyon had it's first Post Office on June 15, 1880 in Centerville. It was opened
under the name of John Adams, who owned one of the stores.
In 1878 the then existing Centerville Bridge over Butte Creek needed
desperate repairs. J.L. Chadwick's bid was $550. He was awarded the contract. In
1881 a 95 ft. section of the bridge was washed away. After several years of
damage to the bridge due to high water County Surveyor M.C. Polk was instructed
by the supervisors to draw up plans for a steel bridge. The winning bid was
$4393. Thus the frequent flood damage to the bridge was eliminated.
The first school of Centerville was opened in 1872 which stood at the
intersection of Helltown Rd. and Centerville Rd. In 1894 Charles Hintz built a
new school on his property, where it still stands.
In 1898 preliminary work began for the Centerville Powerhouse. The powerplant
and transmission lines to Chico were completed in May of 1900.
By 1899 the need arose for better communication with the outside world. John
Adams was granted permission by the counts to erect telephone poles from Chico
to Nimshew. The stated name was -The Independent Telephone Company-.
To learn more about the history of Centerville visit
the
Centerville Colman Memorial Community
Museum
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