California Trails County OverviewCalifornia Trails County Overview
County Names
Most of California's counties where named by Spanish explorers. Many counties are
named after Spanish missions.
Native American names are also represented, with a smattering of counties named for local figures from the early
American era.
County History
-January 4, 1850- Recommened the first 18 Counties created
-Between Jan. 4 and Feb. 18, 1850; 9 more counties where added to the recommendition list with and some name changes.
-Effective February 18, 1850, twenty-seven counties were created
-Early part of 1850, 3 more names changes took place.
-On September 9, 1850, California became the State of California with 27 counties.
-In 1852 Pautah County was formed. With the thought that Congress would give part of the Utah Territory (now part
of Neveda) to California.
-Therefore, Pautah County was formed on land outside of California on the eastern boundary.
(southern end of present Lassen County to the middle of the current eastern boundary of Mono County.)
1859 Pautah County was nullified.
1875 Klamath County was dissolved.
In 1907 Imperial County was formed.
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Counties |
Established |
Parent County |
Name Changes |
|
Alameda |
1853 |
Contra Costa and Santa Clara |
|
|
Alpine |
1864 |
Amador, El Dorado, Calaveras, Mono, and Tuolumne Counties |
|
|
Amador |
1854 |
Calaveras County |
|
|
Butte |
1850 |
Original County |
|
|
Calaveras |
1850 |
Original County |
|
|
Colusa |
1850 |
Original County |
First named Colusi |
|
Contra Costa |
1850 |
Original County |
|
|
Del Norte |
1857 |
Klamath County |
|
|
El Dorado |
1850 |
Original County |
First named Benicia |
|
Fresno |
1856 |
Mariposa, Merced, and Tulare Counties |
|
|
Glenn |
1891 |
northern Colusa County |
|
|
Humboldt |
1853 |
western part of Trinity County |
|
|
Imperial |
1907 |
eastern part of San Diego County |
|
|
Inyo |
1866 |
Mono and Tulare Counties |
|
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Kern |
1866 |
Los Angeles and Tulare Counties |
|
|
Klamath |
1851- Trinity County- Then in 1875 Klamath County was dissolved with land distributed to Humboldt and Siskiyou Counties |
||
|
Kings |
1893 |
Tulare County; some 100 square miles of land was added from Fresno County in 1908 |
|
|
Lake |
1861 |
northern part of Napa County |
|
|
Lassen |
1864 |
Plumas and Shasta Counties |
|
|
Los Angeles |
1850 |
Original County |
|
|
Madera |
1893 |
Fresno County; from the land north of the San Joaquin River. |
|
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Marin |
1850 |
Original County |
|
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Mariposa |
1850 |
Original County |
|
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Mendocino |
1850 |
Original County |
|
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Merced |
1855 |
Mariposa County |
|
|
Modoc |
1874 |
eastern section of Siskiyou County |
|
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Mono |
1861 |
Calaveras, Fresno and Mariposa Counties |
|
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Monterey |
1850 |
Original County |
|
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Napa |
1850 |
Original County |
|
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Nevada |
1851 |
eastern part of Yuba County |
|
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Orange |
1889 |
southern Los Angeles County |
|
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Placer |
1851 |
Sutter and Yuba Counties |
|
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Plumas |
1854 |
Butte County |
|
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Riverside |
1893 |
San Diego and San Bernardino Counties |
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Sacramento |
1850 |
Original County |
|
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San Benito |
1874 |
inland Monterey County |
|
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San Bernardino |
1853 |
Los Angeles County |
|
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San Diego |
1850 |
Original County |
|
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San Francisco |
1850 |
Original County |
|
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San Joaquin |
1850 |
Original County |
|
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San Luis Obispo |
1850 |
Original County |
|
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San Mateo |
1856 |
San Francisco County |
|
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Santa Barbara |
1850 |
Original County |
|
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Santa Clara |
1850 |
Original County |
First named San Jose |
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Santa Cruz |
1850 |
Original County |
First named Branciforte |
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Shasta |
1850 |
Original County |
First named Redding |
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Sierra |
1852 |
Yuba County |
|
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Siskiyou |
1852 |
Shasta and Klamath Counties |
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Solano |
1850 |
Original County |
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Sonoma |
1850 |
Original County |
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Stanislaus |
1854 |
Tuolumne County |
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Sutter |
1850 |
Original County |
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Tehama |
1856 |
Butte, Colusa, and Shasta Counties |
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Trinity |
1850 |
Original County |
|
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Tulare |
1852 |
Mariposa County |
|
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Tuolumne |
1850 |
Original County |
First named Ora |
|
Ventura |
1872 |
Santa Barbara County |
|
|
Yolo |
1850 |
Original County |
First named Fremont Then was named Yola. Then spelling changed to current spelling. |
|
Yuba |
1850 |
Original County |
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Candi Horton ©2006