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California Counties

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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.

Riverside County, California

Riverside County History, Geography, Demographics, Cities and Towns, and Education

County Seat: Riverside
Year Organized: 1893
Square Miles: 7,208

Court House:

4080 Lemon Street, 12th Floor
County Executive Office
Riverside, CA 92501-3679

Etymology - Origin of County Name

This county was created from portions of San Diego and San Bernardino counties and derived its name from the City of Riverside, christened when the upper canal of the Santa Ana River reached it in 1871.

Demographics:

County QuickFacts: Census Bureau Quick Facts

County History

Riverside County is the fourth largest county in the state, stretching nearly 200 miles across and comprising over 7,200 square miles of fertile river valleys, low deserts, mountains, foothills and rolling plains. Riverside County shares borders with densely populated Los Angeles, Imperial, Orange, San Diego, and San Bernardino Counties...extending from within 14 miles of the Pacific Ocean to the Colorado River.

Taking its name from the City of Riverside, the county was formed in 1893 from a small portion of San Bernardino County and a larger part of San Diego County.

Although the county marks its political beginnings in 1893, the land was occupied long before Europeans and their descendants entered the areas, by several Native American groups including the Serranos, the Luisenos, the Cupenos, the Chemehuevi, and the Cahuillas. One of the first caucasians to travel through the area was Juan Bautista de Anza who led an overland expedition in 1774.

In the late 18th century, the Spanish mission fathers of San Gabriel (Los Angeles County), San Juan Capistrano (Orange County), and San Luis Rey (San Diego) began colonizing the land and gradually used the interior valley (in what is now Western Riverside County) for raising grain and cattle. During this period, Spain claimed all of California and Mexico.

In 1822, Mexico successfully revolted against Spain, and California came under Mexican jurisdiction. The missions and their lands were secularized beginning in 1834 and the land was transferred as "grants" to Californians who were citizens of Mexico. The first land grant in what is now Riverside County, Rancho Jurupa, was given to Juan Bandini in 1838.

In 1848, with the signing of the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, California became a territory of the United States, and in 1850 California became a state. This event generated a steady flow of settlers into the area, including gold miners, entrepreneurs, health-seekers, speculators, politicians, adventurers, seekers of religious freedom, and individuals desiring to create utopian colonies.

In May 1893, voters living within an area carved from San Bernardino County (to the north) and San Diego County (to the south), approved formation of Riverside County. On May 9, 1893, the County officially formed, and began charting a course under its newly-elected Board of Supervisors. The County's early years were linked to the agriculture industry...but commerce, construction, manufacturing, transportation, and tourism soon took hold...contributing substantially to the region's rapid growth.

Recent years have brought dramatic population growth to Riverside County. Between 1980 and 1990, the number of residents grew by over 76%...making Riverside the fastest-growing County in California. By 1992, the County was "home" to over 1.3 million residents...more than the entire population of 13 states, among them Maine, Nevada, Hawaii, and New Hampshire.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 18,915 km2 (7,303 sq mi) of which 18,667 km2 (7,207 sq mi) is land and 248 km2 (96 sq mi), or 1.31%, is water.

At roughly 180 miles (290 km) wide in the east-west dimension, the area of the county is massive. County government documents frequently cite the Colorado River town of Blythe as being a "three-hour drive" from the county seat, Riverside. Some view the areas west of San Gorgonio Pass as the Inland Empire portion of the county and the eastern part as either the Mojave Desert or Colorado Desert portion. There are probably at least three geomorphic provinces: the Inland Empire western portion, the Santa Rosa Mountains communities, and the desert region. Other possible subdivisions include tribal lands, the Colorado River communities, and the Salton Sink.

The Inland Empire area of southern California is made up of the western portion of Riverside County.

Neighboring Counties:

North: San Bernardino County
East: La Paz County, Ariz.
Southeast: Imperial County
Southwest: San Diego County
West: Orange County

Cities and Towns:

- Banning	city	Incorporated Area
- Beaumont	city	Incorporated Area
- Blythe	city	Incorporated Area
- Calimesa	city	Incorporated Area
- Canyon Lake	city	Incorporated Area
- Cathedral City	city	Incorporated Area
- Coachella	city	Incorporated Area
- Corona	city	Incorporated Area
- Desert Hot Springs	city	Incorporated Area
- Hemet	city	Incorporated Area
- Indian Wells	city	Incorporated Area
- Indio	city	Incorporated Area
- La Quinta	city	Incorporated Area
- Lake Elsinore	city	Incorporated Area
- Moreno Valley	city	Incorporated Area
- Murrieta	city	Incorporated Area
- Norco	city	Incorporated Area
- Palm Desert	city	Incorporated Area
- Palm Springs	city	Incorporated Area
- Perris	city	Incorporated Area
- Rancho Mirage	city	Incorporated Area
- Riverside (County Seat)	city	Incorporated Area
- San Jacinto	city	Incorporated Area
- Temecula	city	Incorporated Area

County Resources:

Enter County Resources and Information Here

County Resources

The history of our nation was a prolonged struggle to define the relative roles and powers of our governments: federal, state, and local. And the names given the counties, our most locally based jurisdictions, reflects the "characteristic features of this 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."