Modoc County, California
Likely
Likely, California is a small unincorporated community in southeastern Modoc County. It was the home of one of the Pit River Indian tribes before settlers arrived in the middle of the nineteenth century. Two military expeditions against the Pit Indians were conducted during the 1850s in support of settler and gold mining interests. Colonel E.A. Stevenson led the first in 1850. This was during the period of our history when the military were in charge of Indian Affairs. Stevenson was the Indian Agent at the time. The second expedition was led by First Lieutenant George Crook in 1857. Crook went on to become a rather famous Indian fighter in the American Southwest, particularly noted for his long campaign against Geronimo. Here, in the second Pit River campaign, the future general was wounded by an Indian arrow. General Crook returned in 1867 to direct the attack on a mixed force of Paiute and Pit River Indians at Infernal Caverns, just west of Likely. Pit River Indian oral tradition remembers a harsh Crook that had little concern for women and children.
In 1878, the Likely post office was established. At the time, the tiny hamlet was known as South Fork, because it was close to the South Fork of the Pit River. In the 1880s, the U.S. Postal Service decided that the name had to be changed. (One story is that the USPS was insisting on a single word in the name, but it is also possible that there was another South Fork somewhere else that was confusing mail delivery.) The community could not agree on a new name until one rancher noted that it was not likely that they would ever be able to agree on a name. That settled the argument and the town of Likely was born. Today, it is most notable to travelers because of the Most Likely Cafe and the Likely General Store both of which are located on the main thoroughfare. The mainstay of the region's economy used to include the harvest of timber and peat moss, but both have now given way to agriculture and ranching. The South Warner Wilderness area lies to the east of town and is a destination for people who love the outdoors including hunters and fishermen.
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