Explore Oroville's Historical Heritage: A One-Day Cultural Discovery Itinerary

Kick off your day with break­fast at homey Jenn’s Café, an all-Amer­i­can din­er serv­ing up clas­sic pan­cakes, steak and eggs, and more. You’re going to need some good fuel as you head off to Oroville’s Muse­um Mile, a group­ing of five City-oper­at­ed muse­ums that are all with­in one mile of each oth­er in Oroville’s Down­town His­toric Dis­trict. Be sure to keep an eye out for beau­ti­ful murals all over the down­town area.

Start off by explor­ing the C.F. Lott Home, a beau­ti­ful Vic­to­ri­an built in 1856. The col­lec­tion of arti­facts inside demon­strates the typ­i­cal life of a Gold Rush fam­i­ly, includ­ing antique fur­nish­ings, paint­ings, rugs, tex­tiles, clothes, sil­ver, and glass­ware of the peri­od 1849 – 1910.

Next, head to the Oroville Chi­nese Temple near­by. Built in 1863, this beau­ti­ful tem­ple tells the sto­ry of the large pop­u­la­tion of Chi­nese peo­ple liv­ing in the area, start­ing dur­ing the Gold Rush. List­ed on the Nation­al Reg­is­ter of His­toric Places and also as a Cal­i­for­nia Land­mark, the facil­i­ty hous­es beau­ti­ful tapes­try and cos­tume col­lec­tions, exquis­ite gar­dens and a still-active temple.

For a his­toric stop to fuel up for lunch, head to Tong Fong Low, which has been serv­ing authen­tic Chi­nese dish­es in Oroville since 1912.

Next, DIY­ers and handy folks should explore Bolt’s Antique Tool Museum, a unique stop dis­play­ing more than 13,000 hand tools. Start­ed in the 1950s by Carl ​“Bud” Bolt, this once-pri­vate col­lec­tion grew and grew. In 2021, the Smith­son­ian rec­og­nized Bolt’s muse­um as the largest doc­u­ment­ed tool col­lec­tion in the Unit­ed States.

Next, stop at the Pio­neer His­to­ry Museum, an over­sized repli­ca of a Forty-Niner’s cab­in. The col­lec­tion inside illus­trates the life of ear­ly pio­neers and includes antique fur­ni­ture, pianos, cloth­ing dolls and more, as well as a dis­play of Native Amer­i­can arti­facts.

Last­ly, vis­it the Feath­er Riv­er Nature Cen­ter & Native Plant Park at the for­mer site of a Maidu fish­ing vil­lage. Explore the 1930s-era bath house, with exhibits on his­to­ry and local wildlife. Be sure to enjoy the beau­ti­ful gar­dens and trails with scenic views over the Feath­er Riv­er. The fish hatch­ery and fish lad­der are just across the river.

Enjoy a deli­cious din­ner right down­town at Pro­vi­sions, serv­ing deli­cious craft cock­tails and eats in a his­toric build­ing, or near­by Union, which fea­tures pop­u­lar patio seat­ing and a deli­cious grill and beer garden.