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Washington Counties

There are 39 counties in the state of Washington.

Washington was carved out of the western part of Washington Territory and admitted to the Union as the 42nd state in 1889. The first counties were created from unorganized territory in 1845.

Adams County, Washington

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

County Seat: Ritzville
Year Organized: 1883
Square Miles: 1,925

Court House:

210 West Broadway Avenue
County Courthouse
Ritzville, WA 99169-1860

Etymology - Origin of County Name

John Adams, the second president of the United States.

Demographics:

County QuickFacts: Census Bureau Quick Facts

History

Adams County was organized March 1, 1836. A large tract of land lying between Allen and Randolph counties had been previously called Adams County, however, no organization had been effected.

Adams County is a predominantly rural county located in southeastern Washington, with Ritzville serving as county seat. Since 1952 Columbia River water brought through the Columbia Basin Project has irrigated region's fertile volcanic soil. Adams County measures 1,925 square miles, ranking it 14th in size among Washington's 39 counties. It is bordered to the north by Lincoln County, to the east by Whitman County, to the south by Franklin County, and to the west by Grant County. As of 2005, Adams County has a population of 17,000, two-thirds of whom live in rural parts of the county. Othello (population 6,120) and Ritzville (population 1,730) are the largest towns. Agricultural pursuits include dry-land wheat farming, irrigated apple orchards, and field crops (primarily potatoes). The vegetable- and fruit-processing industry, especially potato processing and French fry manufacturing, provides most of the county's industrial employment. As of 2006, Adams County's population was 52 percent Hispanic, with most Hispanic residents being of Mexican heritage. File 7835: Full Text >

Economic

Adams County is an agricultural and livestock economic based region interspersed with pre-historic ice age flood channels, lakes and streams in a semi-arid upland steppe environment that offers a wide range of recreational activity.

Agricultural activity in the county varies from dry land grain and livestock ranching to irrigated crop and orchard land.

Industrial activity is related primarily to the vegetable and fruit processing industry with various support industries.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 1,930 square miles (4,998 km²), of which, 1,925 square miles (4,986 km²) of it is land and 5 square miles (12 km²) of it (0.25%) is water.

Neighboring Counties:

Lincoln County, Washington north
Whitman County, Washington east
Franklin County, Washington south
Grant County, Washington west

Cities and Towns:

- Hatton	town	Incorporated Area
- Lind	town	Incorporated Area
- Othello	city	Incorporated Area
- Ritzville (County Seat)	city	Incorporated Area
- Washtucna	town	Incorporated Area

County Resources:

Adams County

County Resource Guide

Counties: US Map

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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