Chico is a city in Butte County, northern California; incorporated 1872. Chico is the commercial and service center for the surrounding almond- and fruit-growing region. Medical services are particularly important to the economy. It is the site of California State University-Chico. The community was laid out in 1860 by General John Bidwell on land of his Rancho Arroyo Chico (Spanish, "little stream"), hence its name.