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Washington Counties
 Click Image to Enlarge Washington CountiesThere 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. |
Kittitas County, WashingtonKittitas County History, Geography, Demographics, Cities and Towns, and Education
Etymology - Origin of County NameA Native American word of uncertain meaning. Demographics:County QuickFacts: Census Bureau Quick Facts County HistoryKittitas County was created 24 November 1883 from Yakima County Kittitas County, located at the center of Washington between the Cascade Mountains and the Columbia River, was part
of the land ceded by the Yakama Tribe in 1855. Briefly part of Ferguson County (now defunct), then Yakima County,
Kittitas County was established on November 24, 1883. Its geographic area is 2,297.2 square miles, placing it eighth in
size among Washington counties. Ellensburg, home to Central Washington University and the Ellensburg Rodeo, is county
seat. The Kittitas Valley became a stopping place for cowboys driving their herds north toward mining camps in Canada
and northwest toward the Seattle/Tacoma market. By the late 1860s, cattle ranchers established land claims and cattle
became the area's foremost industry. The completion of a wagon road over Snoqualmie Pass in 1867, the arrival of the
Northern Pacific Railroad in 1887, the discovery of gold in Swauk Creek in 1873 and of coal near Cle Elum in 1883, and
the 1932 completion of the Kittitas (irrigation) Project are important turning points in the county's history. Today the
main industries are agriculture (including timothy hay to feed racehorses), manufacturing (food processing, lumber, and
wood products), and government (including employment at Central Washington University). GeographyAccording to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 2,333 square miles (6,043 kmē), of which,
2,297 square miles (5,950 kmē) of it is land and 36 square miles (93 kmē) of it (1.54%) is water. The highest point
in the county is Mount Daniel at 2426 meters (7,959 feet) above sea level. Neighboring Counties:
Cities and Towns:
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." |
