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California State...
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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. |
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Sonoma County, California
Sonoma County History, Geography, Demographics, Cities and Towns, and Education
County Seat: Santa Rosa
Year Organized: 1850
Square Miles: 1,576
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Court House: 575 Administration Dr, Suite 116B
County Courthouse
Santa Rosa, CA 95403-2815
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Etymology - Origin of County Name
Sonoma is a Chocuyen Indian name translated by some as "Valley
of the Moon" and by others as "land or tribe of the Chief Nose."
Demographics:
County QuickFacts: Census Bureau Quick
Facts
History
Sonoma County, located on the northern coast of California, an original county, created February 18, 1850. County
seat, Santa Rosa. Sonoma is a Chocuyen Indian name translated by some as "Valley of the Moon" and by others as "land or
tribe of the Chief Nose."
However, by the early 1850s the town of Sonoma had declined in importance in terms of both commerce
and population, its county buildings were crumbling, and it was relatively remote. As a result, elements
in the newer, rapidly growing towns of Petaluma, Santa Rosa, and Healdsburg began vying to move the
county seat to their towns. The dispute ultimately was between the bigger, richer commercial town of
Petaluma and the more centrally located, growing agricultural center of Santa Rosa. The fate was decided
following an election for the state legislature in which James Bennett of Santa Rosa defeated Joseph
Hooker of Sonoma and introduced a bill that ultimately resulted in Santa Rosa being confirmed as county
seat in 1854. Allegedly, several Santa Rosans, not caring to wait, decided to take action and, one
night, rode down the Sonoma Valley to Sonoma, took the county seals and records, and brought them to
Santa Rosa.
Geography
Hood Mountain with vineyards in foreground.According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Sonoma County has a
total area of 1,768 sq mi (4,580 kmē). 1,576 sq mi (4,082 kmē) is land, and 192 sq mi (498 kmē) (10.88%)
is water.
Neighboring Counties:
- North: Lake County
- East: Napa County
- Southeast: Solano County
- South: Marin County
- West: North Pacific Ocean
- Northwest: Mendocino County
Cities and Towns:
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- Cloverdale |
city |
Incorporated Area |
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- Cotati |
city |
Incorporated Area |
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- Healdsburg |
city |
Incorporated Area |
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- Petaluma |
city |
Incorporated Area |
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- Rohnert Park |
city |
Incorporated Area |
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- Santa Rosa
(County Seat) |
city |
Incorporated Area |
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- Sebastopol |
city |
Incorporated Area |
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- Sonoma |
city |
Incorporated Area |
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- Windsor |
town |
Incorporated Area |
County Resources:
Enter County Resources and Information Here
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County Resource Guide
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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." |
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