Westwood, California

Westwood is built upon lava flows from Cascade Mountain Range volcanoes to the north. Keddie Ridge is considered to be at the northern end of the Sierra Nevada Mountain Range.[4]

According to the United States Census Bureau, the CDP has a total area of 5.5 square miles (14 km²), of which 5.4 square miles (14 km²) is land and 0.1 square miles (0.26 km²) (1.34%) is water.

Westwood was built by T. B. Walker to be the operations center for the Red River Lumber Company in 1913,[3][5][6] and serviced by the Fernley and Lassen Railway built in 1912–14. The first post office opened in 1913.[3] The Red River Lumber Company is credited as being "the world's largest electrical sawmill of the times."[7] Red River Lumber Company also operated one of the first electric railways in the state built in 1927.[8] The mill was equipped with the most modern equipment for its time;[9] and the surrounding territory was crisscrossed by forest railways bringing logs to the mill. The railway shop at Westwood was home to 2-8-0 No. 102 and 2-8-2 No. 104 when forest railway operations ceased in the early 1950s.[10] The four woods engines scrapped in 1953 were 2-6-0 number 1, 2-6-2 number 2, 2-8-2 number 3, and 3-truck Shay locomotive number 4.[11]

William Laughead, an advertising copywriter who had once worked in lumber camps, took the stories of an old lumberjack and reworked them into the modern character.[12] He sold the stories of Paul Bunyan and his Blue Ox "Babe" to the Red River Lumber Company, which published "Introducing Mr. Paul Bunyan of Westwood, California" in 1916 as an advertising pamphlet.[13] Among other things, Laughead gave the name "Babe" to the blue ox, originated the idea that Paul Bunyan and Babe were of enormous size, and created the first pictorial representation of Bunyan.[13]

The Red River Lumber Company's electric mill at Westwood made wooden Venetian blinds, plywood, boxes, doors and windows which were shipped all over the U.S. and the world.[14] The Westwood mill set a world record in 1942 by sawing 212 million board feet.[14]

Westwood High School's nickname is the Lumberjacks. Westwood had a very large indoor shopping mall as far back as the 1930s, as well as a large theater, skating rink and club for the mill workers. The town was sold in 1944 to the Fruit Growers Supply Company (sister cooperative of Sunkist Growers).[15] The plant closed in 1956, and the town was sold to residents and developers.[16]

Westwood also had a very early form of cable television. The owner of the local variety store took it upon himself to provide television service to the community. At the time three channels were available to view in Westwood, Channel 3, the NBC affiliate in Sacramento, Channel 7, the ABC affiliate in Redding and Channel 12, the CBS affiliate in Chico. Multiple antennae were mounted outside of town and coax cable was laid up and down the alleys. For a small monthly fee a home could have television service without having three separate antennae on the roof.

The San Joaquin and Eastern Railroad sold Shay locomotive Lima #2534 to the Red River Lumber Company.[20]

The BNSF Railway (BNSF) has a Maintenance of Way station and a siding that is used to store BNSF snow fighting equipment.

The Westwood Community Services District serves 2,000 people.[21]

In the state legislature, Westwood is in the 1st Senate District, represented by Republican Brian Dahle,[22] and the 1st Assembly District, represented by Republican Megan Dahle.[23]

Federally, Westwood is in California's 1st congressional district, represented by Republican Doug LaMalfa.[24]

Westwood is the site of the Walker family mansion and statues of Paul Bunyan and Babe the Blue Ox.

The "Bizz" Johnson Trail, ends 4 miles (6.4 km) north of Westwood, at Mason Station. Named for Harold T. Johnson, U.S. Congressman from California, the rail trail follows the 24.5 miles (39.4 km) Fernley and Lassen Railway right-of-way.[25]

• Pat O'Dea, pioneering, Australian-born American Football kicker for the Wisconsin Badgers, fled an embezzlement charge in San Francisco and lived in Westwood under the pseudonym "Charles J. Mitchell" between 1919 and 1934.[26]
• John H. Tolan a U.S. Representative from California died in Westwood on June 30, 1947.[27]
• T. B. Walker successful American businessperson who acquired timber in Minnesota and California and became an art collector, founding the Minneapolis Public Library and the Walker Art Center. In 1923, he was among the ten wealthiest men in the world.[28] He built two company towns, including Westwood, which one of his sons, Archie, sold to become part of what is today known as Sunkist.

• Moonlight Fire
• Mountain Meadows Reservoir

• Robert M. Hanft (June 1980). Red River: Paul Bunyan's own lumber company and its railroads. Center for Business and Economic Research, California State University, Chico. ISBN 978-0-9602894-5-5.

• Geology of the area
• Images of Westwood from the *Eastman’s Originals Collection, *Special Collections Dept., University of California, Davis.
• Gallery of logging photos of Westwood.
• Inventory of the Red River Lumber Company Photograph Album, circa 1920s, Forest History Society Archives
• Inventory of the William B. Laughead Papers, 1897-1958, Forest History Society Archives
• The Paul Bunyans
• Westwood Area Chamber of Commerce

According to the Köppen Climate Classification system, Westwood has a warm-summer Mediterranean climate, abbreviated "Csa" on climate maps.[29]