Leavitt is an unincorporated community in Lassen County, California, United States, located alongside the Southern Pacific Railroad, Fernley and Lassen Railway branch, 7 miles (11 km) east of Susanville,[2] and 7 miles west of Litchfield, at an elevation of 4,104 feet (1,251 m).[1] It is the site of the High Desert State Prison.

Leavitt, California
Former locale
Location of Leavitt in California
Coordinates: 40°23′46″N 120°31′34″W
Country	United States
State	California
County	Lassen
Elevation [1]	4,104 ft (1,251 m)
Time zone	UTC-8 (PST)
• Summer (DST)	UTC-7 (PDT)
GNIS feature ID	226986[1]

History

Benjamin Hanson Leavitt (1834–1918), a pioneer rancher and lumberman who came from the state of Maine, settled in Lassen County in 1864[3] and proposed to build this town on his ranch in 1912. It consisted of one store, a few dwellings and a corral.[4] Benjamin Leavitt was a descendant of Samuel Leavitt of Exeter, New Hampshire.

Benjamin Leavitt engineered the Honey Lake Valley irrigation system, including Leavitt Lake.[5] Leavitt also named nearby Clinton, California, for his hometown of Clinton in Kennebec County, Maine.[6] (The town was renamed Leavitt Lake in 1973 when house construction began there.)[7] Benjamin Leavitt was married to Celara Cleveland (Edwards) Leavitt, born in Massachusetts.

A post office at Leavitt was established in October 1914, and named after May F. Leavitt, the first postmaster. It was discontinued in December 1920.[8]

References