|
California State...
|
|
|
|
|
| |
California Counties
|
|
Click Image to Enlarge
California Counties
The U.S. state of California is divided into fifty-eight counties.
On January 4, 1850, the California constitutional committee recommended the formation of 18 counties. They were
Benicia, Butte, Fremont, Los Angeles, Mariposa, Monterey, Mount Diablo, Oro, Redding, Sacramento, San Diego, San
Francisco, San Joaquin, San Jose, San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara, Sonoma, and Sutter. On April 22, the counties
of Branciforte, Calaveras, Coloma, Colusi, Marin, Mendocino, Napa, Trinity, and Yuba were added. Benicia was
renamed Solano, Coloma to El Dorado, Fremont to Yola, Mt. Diablo to Contra Costa, San Jose to Santa Clara, Oro
to Tuolumne, and Redding to Shasta. One of the first state legislative acts regarding counties was to rename
Branciforte County to Santa Cruz, Colusi to Colusa, and Yola to Yolo.
The last California county to have been established is Imperial County in 1907. |
|
|
|
| |
|
|
Lassen County, California
Lassen County History, Geography, Demographics, Cities and Towns, and Education
County Seat: Susanville
Year Organized: 1864
Square Miles: 4,558 |
Court House: 221 South Roop Street
County Administrative Center
Susanville, CA 96130-0000
|
Etymology - Origin of County Name
The county's name was derived from Mount Lassen, which was
named for Peter Lassen, one of General Fremont's guides and a famous trapper,
frontiersman and Indian fighter. He was killed by the Paiutes at the base of the
mountain in 1859.
Demographics:
County QuickFacts: Census Bureau Quick
Facts
History
Lassen County was formed in 1864 from parts of Plumas and Shasta Counties. Due to uncertainties over
the California border, what is now Lassen County was part of the unofficial Nataqua Territory and Roop
County, Nevada during the late 1850s and early 1860s.
In the 1840's, John C. Fremont and his army followed the trails left behind by fur trappers exploring the area in the
1830's to prepare for the Bear Flag revolt, which led to the creation of California.
With the Gold Rush of 1849 and emigrants following established trail routes through the area, it was not until 1854 that
the area began to take shape, as a trading post was established on the west end of Honey Lake Valley.A small gold rush
just south of the trading post two years later caused the permanent settlement of Honey Lake Valley and Lassen County.
In 1863, due to a growing dispute over land boundaries and taxes, the Sagebrush War ensued. After a victorious end for
the residents in the area, Lassen County was created.
By 1880, many settlements had sprung up in the area, and the railroad industry had begun to develop interests in the
area. The Nevada-California-Oregon Railway (NCO), which operated from 1880 to 1927, was the longest narrow gauge line in
the nation in this century, traversing the eastern side of the County and assisted in the development of the high desert
region of eastern Lassen. The Fernley & Lassen Railroad, built in 1913, tapped into western Lassen's timber resources.
Also shaping the area at that time was the lumber industry, particularly the Red River Lumber Company of Westwood, the
world's largest electrical sawmill of that time, and two other large mills which developed in the Susanville area.
Other towns in the area, (Herlong, Janesville, Doyle, Standish, Bieber Hayden Hill and Wendel) all had their place in
developing County of Lassen during this time as well.
Geography
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 4,720 square miles (12,226 kmē),
of which, 4,557 square miles (11,803 kmē) of it is land and 163 square miles (422 kmē) of it (3.46%) is
water. Part of Lassen Volcanic National Park extends onto a western corner of the county.
Neighboring Counties:
- North: Modoc County
- East: Washoe County, Nev.
- South: Sierra County
- Southwest: Plumas County
- West: Shasta County
Cities and Towns:
|
- Susanville
(County Seat) |
city |
Incorporated Area |
County Resources:
Enter County Resources and Information Here
|
|
County Resource Guide
|
|
|
The history of our nation can be seen as a prolonged struggle to define the relative roles and powers of our governments: federal, state, and local. And the names we've given our counties, our most locally based jurisdictions, reflects the "characteristic
features of our country!"
But age, size and colorful names of our counties isn't the only reason to explore counties' role in American history, or the history of county government itself. In fact, the story of county government reflects the larger meanings of American history.
Today's counties are the most flexible, locally responsive and creative governments in the US. They are the most diverse, varying in size, population, geography, and governmental structure. In their politics and policies, they express a 1990's political slogan "Think globally,
act locally." |
|
|
| |
|
