The Town of Paradise tells one story of its name: William Leonard, a mill owner, rested under a tall pine on a hot day and told his crew, “boys, this is paradise.” Another story ties the name to a Gold Rush “Pair-O-Dice.” We could not confirm either one in a record, so both are told here as stories.
Not confirmed No document we could open proves how Paradise was named. Treat every version below as a story.
The Story The Town Tells
The Town of Paradise’s history page says, “As a legend goes,” that William Leonard and his mill crew were returning with oxen and a wagon from delivering lumber to the valley on a scorching summer day. They entered the cool forest, and Leonard rested on the pine needles under a tall tree and told his crew: “boys, this is paradise.” The Town says Paradise was named around the time that lumber mills were operating, in the 1850s and 1860s, after Dogtown (now Magalia) got its post office in 1857. The Town takes its history from the book This Paradise We Call Home by Lois H. McDonald.
The Pair-O-Dice Story
A second telling is repeated around the Ridge: that the camp was known in Gold Rush days as “Pair-O-Dice,” and that the name was later polished into Paradise. The name is often tied to a saloon or to a group of miners. We found this version in news stories and general reference pages, not in an official record. The Town of Paradise’s history page does not mention it, and we did not find it on a State of California, Butte County or museum page we could open.
We also found no document that shows a saloon with that name stood on the Ridge. So we do not say that it did.
- Not confirmedThat a saloon or camp called Pair-O-Dice existed on the Ridge
- Not confirmedWho first used the name “Pair-O-Dice,” and when
- Not confirmedThat William Leonard spoke the words the legend gives him
- Not confirmedThe year the town took the name Paradise
What Is Documented
- Dogtown (now Magalia) had a post office in 1857, per the Town.
- Lumber mills ran on the Ridge in the 1850s and 1860s, per the Town.
- The railroad reached the Ridge in 1904, per the Town.
- Paradise incorporated as a town on November 27, 1979, per the Town.
Where to Look Next
The Gold Nugget Museum’s Depot Museum keeps the Ridge’s local history, and its volunteers may know more than any web page. We have not asked them; this site does no outreach. Our Legends page lists the other tales we cover and how we label them.
Sources
- Town of Paradise, Community history (Leonard legend, Dogtown post office 1857, mills, railroad, incorporation, McDonald book). Read October 30, 2026.
Cite this page: “How Paradise, California Got Its Name” It’s Chico, checked October 30, 2026. https://itschico.com/history/how-paradise-got-its-name/