The Paradise Depot Museum

Old Paradise Depot Becoming Local Railroad and Logging Museum

The Paradise Depot Museum is on the way! And the Gold Nugget Museum needs your help converting the Paradise Depot into a local railroad and logging mueum. The Town of Paradise has created the Paradise Community Park on the former depot grounds and has done the basic reconstruction of the old depot. Now it is the Museum’s job to paint the exterior, do the interior construction and develop the museum. The community is helping with donations of cash, supplies, memorabilia and labor.

Forty major donors of $1,000 or more in cash or kind are “Golden Spike Sponsors,” with their names on golden spikes permanently displayed in the depot. The Gold Nugget Museum is proud that Alice Smith, former mayor and community activist, agreed to serve as honorary chairperson of the Golden Spike campaign.

At the Community Park’s dedication, a new giving opportunity for the depot museum will be announced—the Gandy Dancers campaign, with all donors of $100 or more honored on a plaque featuring a gandy dancer’s sledge hammer.

The grand opening of the Paradise Depot Museum will take place late spring or summer 2007.

The Paradise Depot opened in March 1904, one of four depots of the Butte County Rail Road, built to serve Diamond Match Company operations in Stirling City and Barber (Chico). BCRR soon added passenger and cargo services and Paradise became the busiest depot on the route. It formed the heart of a new "downtown" and was the engine of economic development for the town and successful marketing of produce.

A famous wreck occurred in 1909, when a new engineer lost control coming down from Magalia. The crash occurred between Pearson and Neal Roads, killing two people. Openly operated by Southern Pacific after 1912, the last train went through in 1974, tracks were removed by SP and the roadbed now serves as a Memorial Trail for bikers and hikers.