Artois, California

Artois, formerly known as Germantown, is a census-designated place in Glenn County, California, USA. It is located 5mi north of Willows, at an elevation of 167 feet (51 m), in the northern Sacramento Valley of California. It is located on the former United States Highway 99W, and is bypassed to the west by Interstate Highway 5. It is served by the California Northern Railroad, formerly the west Sacramento Valley line of the Southern Pacific Railroad. Its coordinates are approximately 39°37' N 122°12' W. The ZIP code for Artois is 95913. The community is inside area code 530. The population was 295 at the 2010 census.HistoryThe name stems from the ancient province in France where the method of boring artesian wells was first adopted. Artois was formerly named Germantown, and petitions to change the Germantown post office name were successful with Artois adopted on May 21, 1918. Local belief is that a World War I troop train stopped to water at Gemantown and a riot ensued when the troops took offense at the name. The town was then renamed after the Battles of Artois.The Germantown post office opened in 1877, and changed its name to Artois in 1918.On June 1, 2011, a tornado rated at EF-1, struck east of Artois, uprooting hundreds of almond trees, and causing damage to farm equipment and roofing materials.