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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.

Douglas County, Washington

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

County Seat: Waterville
Year Organized: 1883
Square Miles: 1,821

Court House:

213 South Rainier, P.O. Box 747
County Courthouse
Waterville, WA 98858-0516

Etymology - Origin of County Name

Stephen Arnold Douglas, the statesman and rival of Abraham Lincoln.

Demographics:

County QuickFacts: Census Bureau Quick Facts

History

Douglas County was created 28 November 1883 from Lincoln County.

Douglas County is a predominantly rural county located in north central Washington. Waterville is the county seat. The county's proximity to Grand Coulee Dam just over the county line (spanning the Columbia River between Okanogan and Grant counties), as well as the four Columbia River dams within the county have over time provided work for thousands of Douglas County residents. The county comprises 1821 square miles, and ranks 17th in size among Washington's 39 counties. The Columbia River, either flowing through its channel or constricted in equalizing reservoirs behind dams, almost completely encircles Douglas County, which is bordered by Chelan County to the west, Okanogan County to the north, Grant County to the east/southeast, and a small part of Kittitas County to the south. As of June 2006 Douglas County had an estimated population of 35,700. East Wenatchee (population 11,420) and Bridgeport (population 2075) are the largest towns. Agriculture, especially apple, pear, and cherry orchards, and wheat, provides a significant percentage of the county's employment.
File 7961: Full Text >

Economic

Douglas & Chelan are part of a two-county region called North Central Washington. This is a prime location for business relocation, because of our multiple industrial and recreational resources. Resources that include low-cost power, broadband fiber, low-cost land, year-round recreation, competitive labor rates, and full healthcare services.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 1,849 square miles (4,788 km²), of which, 1,821 square miles (4,715 km²) of it is land and 28 square miles (73 km²) of it (1.52%) is water.

Neighboring Counties:

Okanogan County, Washington - north
Grant County, Washington - south
Kittitas County, Washington - southwest
Chelan County, Washington - west

Cities and Towns:

- Bridgeport	city	Incorporated Area
- East Wenatchee	city	Incorporated Area
- Mansfield	town	Incorporated Area
- Rock Island	city	Incorporated Area
- Waterville (County Seat)	town	Incorporated Area
- Wenatchee	city	Incorporated Area

County Resources:

Enter County Resources and Information Here

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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