The historic Senator movie theatre in downtown Chico California, taken summer 2010. Copyright BeMedia Internet 2010.

The leading Hotel of Chico, California Auditorium Hotel located at 3rd and Main Streets

25 years agoWorld-class organ debuts at CSUCIt’s been a long five years for supporters of the Chico State University Centennial Organ Project, but local organ enthusiasts finally got what they’ve been waiting for this weekend.Chico State music professor David Rothe presented the new pipe organ to the community Friday and Saturday nights with a concert […]

25 YEARS AGOChicoan donating estate to universityLongtime Chico resident Gertrude Grimm will donate an estate worth $1.4 million to Chico State University’s agriculture and engineering programs.In an interview, she said she wanted to help those two programs especially because her son, a Chico State graduate, had studied engineering, and her husband had studied agriculture.Donation arrangements […]

25 YEARS AGO‘Old Hutch’ dies after heart attackLocal historian, professor emeritus and distinguished writer, William Henry “Old Hutch” Hutchinson, died Sunday.Gerald Stairs, academic vice president and provost at Chico State University, where Hutchinson taught from 1964 to 1978, said “Old Hutch” “kept the pulse beat at a high level and was a challenge to us […]

25 years agoRift over campus businesses settled A sometimes-bitter dispute between Chico State University’s administration and the Associated Students over operation of the campus bookstore and food services came to an amicable end Monday with signing of a five-year contract.Since spring of 1988, student leaders and campus officials have wrangled over who controls campus enterprises […]

25 YEARS AGOGenealogical Society home at lastPARADISE — Paradise Genealogical Society members moved their library into the “little house” at 174 Pearson Road last week. President Marilyn Fairchild, Elsie Reusch and the late Florence Styles had searched for a permanent location for 10 years. The house, built in the 1930s by Don and Clara Brown, […]

25 years agoMidway still closed at derailment siteDURHAM — Work crews are cleaning up the Dec. 13 freight train derailment site, but it may be over a week before the Midway reopens for traffic.The chlorine tanker, the biggest headache of the Southern Pacific derailment, is now at a processing plant outside Butte County.On Thursday, 75 […]

Bidwell Presbyterian Church is shown under construction in 1909. A fire struck the building in 1931, which required a restructuring and renovation. The photo was restored by Gary Quiring and comes from the John Nopel Collection. Photos like this can be seen at the Chico Museum exhibit of Nopel’s historical photos, “Chico in Black and […]

25 YEARS AGOState of emergency declaration opens way for relief OROVILLE — With mountain areas digging themselves out of the worst snowstorm in recent Butte County history, the Board of Supervisors met Thursday to pass a state of emergency resolution. The resolution was sent to Gov. George Deukmejian, who declared the state of emergency for […]

25 YEARS AGORestrictions on ridge water beginPARADISE — During a Friday meeting Paradise Irrigation District directors unanimously imposed immediate restrictions on some outdoor water uses, and Manager Phil Kelly told the board worsening water conditions this summer could require further restrictions. He said warming weather has resulted in increased water use, with customers using 7 […]

25 YEARS AGOSnow landscapes the foothillsA storm front spread a white blanket over the foothills overnight, providing an unscheduled snow holiday for many students.Forest Ranch, Cohasset and Paradise schools were closed this morning due to road conditions, and Chico Unified School District buses that usually collect foothill high school and junior high school students stayed […]

25 YEARS AGOLand swap urged to save historic language housesAn old idea was resurrected that could save six boarded-up but stately university-owned homes on West Third Street.The Chico City Council will decide in July whether saving the historic language houses is worth sacrificing other neighborhood houses adjacent to the university.The oldest house was built in […]

25 YEARS AGONew airline to begin Chico-San Jose serviceStarting June 15, American Eagle Airlines, a wing of the company that owns American Airlines, will provide three round-trip flights daily between Chico and San Jose.Chico will be a mid-point on flights which will originate or end in Klamath Falls, Ore., Joanne Dowty, vice president for marketing […]

25 YEARS AGO‘Wetlands panic makes Chico land prices soarWetlands, and actions threatened by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to protect them, have fueled a “state of panic” that has driven Chico real estate values by up to 12 percent in the past two weeks, according to Sue Heimann, local board of Realtors president.One city […]

25 YEARS AGOConditions ‘worst in 20 years’Snow was a four-letter word for crews struggling to keep Butte County’s roads open today. County Public Works Director Bill Cheff said the snow created “the worst conditions we’ve encountered in the last 20 years.”“We plow and by the time we return the snow’s back. We’re trying to keep […]

25 YEARS AGO1,900 acres of McGowan Ranch sold to stateThe state Wildlife Conservation Board has pulled off a major coup for environmental interest, buying 1,937 acres of McGowan Ranch farmland in the Upper Butte Sink.The $4.8 million deal, expected to close escrow within two weeks, also includes 4 1/2 miles of Butte Creek.The property will […]

Chico >> There is little to connect Cornelia Clark Fort, who died in 1943 in Texas, and Rene Vercruyssen, a Chicoan who lives today, other than an ironic story involving an airplane. But it’s enough to bring out the romantic in you.It has also given birth to a new exhibit at the Chico Air Museum, […]

25 YEARS AGOWetlands compromise protection plans being drafted to get projects movingA coalition of developers, with the informal blessing of city, school and Chamber of Commerce representatives, is working on a compromise plan to end a virtual moratorium on building in Chico’s east side.The proposed compromise involves two wetlands protection plans — one to allow […]

25 YEARS AGOMaking Hay; Farmer With Simple Idea Creates Big StirCAPAY — Roy Canadas may call himself a “dumb farmer,” but he’s come up with an awfully smart idea.He invented a new method to fight mold in hay which makes harvesting quicker, improves quality and cuts expenses for farmers. He attached a spear-like plunger onto […]