San Bernardino County history: Belleville, CA – Welcome to San Bernardino County

Illustration titled "The Artist's Conception of a Street in Belleville in 1860," showing a street scene with people, a horse, and buildings labeled Octagon House, Faro and Assay Office. — *Illustration of a street in Belleville from The Sun newspaper, Oct. 16, 1966.*

Thousands of aspiring miners, entrepreneurs and their families made the difficult journey to California during the Gold Rush. In the 1850s, about 92,000 people lived in California. By 1860, the population had grown to more than 379,000 people. Between 1848 and 1855, over 750,000 pounds of gold was mined in California.

Locally, gold was discovered in the San Bernardino Mountains by two prosperous miners, William F. Holcomb and Ben Choteau. The surrounding region came to be known as Holcomb Valley, which is located about five miles north of Big Bear Lake. Holcomb Valley produced more gold wealth than any other mining district in Southern California. A gold camp soon developed into a booming town, which was named Belleville in honor of the first child born there, Belle.

For a time, the Belleville/Holcomb Valley region grew to an estimated 10,000 residents, becoming the third largest community in California. A local legend claims that Belleville was once considered as a potential San Bernardino County seat and governmental center.

According to the story, residents placed a measure on the 1860 ballot to have Belleville become the county seat. After the election, ballots were counted at the county courthouse in San Bernardino. When the tally was completed, Belleville lost the county seat election by only two votes, with the city of San Bernardino declared the winner.

However, there is no historical evidence that supports this legend. Specifically, there are no newspaper articles or legislative records showing that any official attempt was ever made to change the county seat from San Bernardino to Belleville during those years, as required by state law.

As time passed, hand mining in the region declined and most residents left Belleville after 1870. Hard rock mining continued at the Gold Mountain Mine until 1919. Once a booming gold rush town, Belleville is now a ghost town.

The information in this historical feature was originally part of a video series produced by the Assessor-Recorder-County Clerk’s office.

Additional County Update News – December 11