Coutolenc, California facts for kids
Coutolenc, also known by names like Old Lovelock, Brownharts, and Musselmans, was once a small settlement in Butte County, California. It was located about 8.5 miles (13.7 km) northeast of a town called Paradise.
The Story of Coutolenc
How Old Lovelock Began
The first village in this area was started by an English settler named George Lovelock (1824–1907). He arrived in California in 1851. George Lovelock followed the gold miners and loggers north. He eventually settled in the forest near Butte Creek. Here, he ran a small mill to cut down sugar pine trees. He also sold lumber and opened a store for the growing community around him.
After 1864, the demand for lumber decreased because of the American Civil War. George Lovelock then moved away to Nevada. The town of Lovelock, Nevada was later named after him.
The Post Office and New Name
A post office called Lovelocks had been opened in George Lovelock's store. When he left, this post office moved north. It went to the place now called Lovelock on the Skyway crossroads.
In the 1880s, a settler from the French Alps named Eugene Fortunat Coutolenc bought land in the busy village of Old Lovelock. By then, the village had a hotel and a saloon. Eugene Coutolenc worked to get the old post office reopened. In 1890, the post office was reopened and given the name Coutolenc. It stayed open until 1937.
