Browse Museums

Bolt's Antique Tool Museum
Oroville, California

General, History, Historic House, Specialized

The Bolt's Antique Tool Museum celebrates the tools that built our world. It is the largest known documented collection of hand tools. It began in 1957 when Carl “Bud” Bolt was a representative of Snap-On Tools. He needed some old tools to show how his new tools were superior to the old ones. Thus began Bud’s life-long fascination with old tools. Although he vowed to stop collecting when he reached 1,000 pieces, the collection now numbers over 8,400 pieces. Each is meticulously cataloged and referenced with research ongoing, fulfilling Bud’s dream of having a collection that will be enjoyed and studied by tool aficionados, scholars, and students from around the world.

C. F. Lott Home in Sank Park
Oroville, California

General, History, Historic House

A Victorian revival style structure, the C.F. Lott Home was built in 1856 by “Judge” Lott, a gold-rush pioneer who helped form California’s government and started the first Citrus Exchange in California. Although now over 150 years old, only two generations have lived in this house. Much of the original furnishings are on display to help tell the story of how the well-to-do lived “out west.” The collection includes antique furnishings, paintings, rugs, textiles, clothes, silver, and glassware from the period 1849-1910. A tour of the house reveals stories of the Lott family and their importance to early California (the Judge was also a State Senator). It also retells his daughter, Cornelia’s, love story with Jesse Sank and their eventual happiness.

Pioneer History Museum
Oroville, California

Archaeology, Children's, Culture, General, History, Historic House

The collection concentrates on items illustrating the pioneers’ life up to the late 1920s It includes such diverse items such as; Antique pianos, the original Oregon City School organ, a grand old clock from Bidwell Bar, gambler’s items, dolls (including a doll from the Donner Party), a miner's vest tailored to hold different size nuggets, and even a handmade gold needle.

Butte County Historical Society Museum & Archives
Oroville, California

General, History, Historic House, Historical Society, Library

Our forte is research materials on all aspects of the rich history of our County. The museum reflects interesting aspects of County history from gold mining, construction of Oroville Dam, filming of the movie Robin Hood and the life of Erle Stanley Gardner.

EHMANN HOME - BCHS Headquarters
Oroville, California

General, History, Historic House, Historical Society

The Ehmann Home was built in 1911 by Edwin Ehmann in the Craftsman Bungalow style. The architect was John Morton of Chico. Today it is the only surviving reminder of the once grand Ehmann Olive Company presence in Butte County. The story of the Ehmann home begins with Freda Ehmann and her olives. She is considered the "mother" of the modern olive canning industry. Her olive curing business began with her desperate effort to develop a market for the olives from her 20-acre orchard. Until this time, olives had been grown primarily for oil; olive curing and canning had not been reliably successful. Through experimentation and stringent quality control, she developed a reliable curing system.

MUSEUM CONFERENCES

Oregon Museum Association 2024 Conference

September 8, 2024 - September 10, 2025

North Bend, Oregon

2025 California Association of Museums Conference

February 18 - 22, 2025

San Fransico, California

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