List of former United States counties

This article provides a list of United States counties which no longer exist. They were established by a state, provincial, colonial, or territorial government. Most of these counties were created and disbanded in the 19th century; county boundaries have changed little since 1900 in the vast majority of states. A county is repeated on the list if its jurisdiction changed from one state/colony/territory to another.

This list includes (but is not limited to) counties that were renamed but retained their territorial integrity, or counties that were transferred wholesale to another state when it was separated from another state (Massachusetts counties transferred to Maine; Virginia counties transferred to West Virginia).

Alabama

Alaska

Alaska has never created counties. Under Section 9 of the 1912 organic act creating the Territory of Alaska, Alaska was prohibited from establishing counties without explicit approval from the U.S. Congress. The framers of the Constitution of Alaska chose to forgo consideration of a county system in favor of a system of boroughs, both organized and unorganized. In 1961, the Alaska Legislature formalized the borough structure to encompass multiple, separate organized boroughs and a single unorganized borough. Alaska currently has 18 organized boroughs. The United States Census Bureau, beginning with the 1970 United States Census, divided the Unorganized Borough into census areas. The boundaries of these census areas were largely based upon the early election districts of the state, which in turn were largely based upon the recording districts of the territory. Following is a list of former boroughs in Alaska:

Arizona

Arkansas

California

Colorado

Colorado Territory was formed from the lands of four organized territories: Kansas to the southeast, New Mexico to the south, Utah to the west, and Nebraska to the northeast. Before Colorado Territory was organized, all of these except Nebraska had declared county boundaries that included part of modern-day Colorado.

Counties formed by New Mexico Territory

Counties formed by Utah Territory

On March 3, 1852, the following counties were organized by Utah Territory, with boundaries reaching into what is now western Colorado:

Upon the organization of Colorado Territory in 1861, which became law on February 28, these counties ceased to have jurisdiction in Colorado.

Green River County was also created on March 3, 1852, but never organized; it was dissolved in 1857 and recreated in 1859. After losing land to Colorado Territory in 1861 and Wyoming Territory in 1868, Green River County was finally dissolved in 1872.

Beaver County was formed on January 5, 1856 from parts of Iron and Millard counties, and like other Utah counties, ceased to have jurisdiction in Colorado.

Counties created by Kansas Territory

Kansas Territory's western reaches encompassed the mining centers of Aurora and Pike's Peak. Beginning with the massive Arapahoe County, Kansas Territory provided for a number of counties in what would become Colorado, but organized none of them before achieving statehood in 1861.

Arapahoe County was proclaimed August 25, 1855 but never organized; it reverted to unorganized territory when Kansas joined the Union on January 29, 1861. On February 7, 1859, several counties were split from Arapahoe County; none of them were organized, and also reverted to unorganized territory when Kansas became a state. They were:

Peketon County was created on the same day in 1859, but never organized. Like Arapahoe and its daughter counties, it reverted to unorganized territory upon Kansas achieving statehood.

Note on Nebraska Territory

No counties were organized in Nebraska Territory's portion of the future Colorado Territory.

Counties created by the Provisional Territory of Jefferson

On November 28, 1859, the Provisional General Assembly of the extralegal Territory of Jefferson proclaimed the boundaries of 12 counties:

It was never recognized by Federal authorities, but the provisional government of the Territory of Jefferson held effective control of what became Colorado for a year and a half. Although the act establishing the Colorado Territory became law on February 28, 1861, the first Federal governor, William Gilpin, did not arrive in Denver until late May, and the Jefferson government disbanded itself on June 6, 1861. In November 1861, Colorado's territorial legislature would establish counties of its own, with many boundaries following those of the Jefferson counties.

Counties created by Colorado Territory

Counties created by the State of Colorado

Connecticut

Delaware

District of Columbia

The United States Census Bureau and the Office of Management and Budget currently consider the District of Columbia to consist of a single county equivalent. Otherwise the District of Columbia currently has no counties or county equivalents. The former counties of the District of Columbia are:

Georgetown City and Washington City are former county equivalents. The District of Columbia comprised three county equivalents when it was consolidated in 1871: Georgetown City, Washington City, and the Remainder of the District—as they are termed in the Ninth Census of the United States (1870). There had been four county equivalents in the District prior to the retrocession of Alexandria to Virginia in 1846. In its retrospective decennial population counts the Ninth Census lists four for 1840 back to 1810, Alexandria and Washington counties alone for 1800, and none for 1790 prior to the creation of the district.

Florida

Georgia

Idaho

Illinois

Revolutionary era

Former counties of the Northwest and Indiana territories

Before Illinois Territory was created in 1809, it was part of the Northwest Territory from 1788 to 1800, and Indiana Territory from 1800 to 1809. At first, two counties of the Northwest Territory were created to govern what became the modern state of Illinois, followed by two others:

Counties organized by Illinois Territory

Other counties were organized by the Illinois Territory from the lands of St. Clair County between 1812 and 1819 and notionally included parts of the future Michigan, Minnesota, and Wisconsin territories in their boundaries:

Before Illinois achieved statehood in 1818, the part of Illinois Territory excluded from the new state (Wisconsin, eastern Minnesota, and the western Upper Peninsula of Michigan) was transferred to Michigan Territory. No county governments were included in this transfer.

Indiana

Revolutionary era

Former counties of the Northwest and Indiana territories

Indiana Territory was created in 1800, and had since 1788 been part of the Northwest Territory; the new territory included modern-day Illinois, Indiana, Wisconsin and eastern Minnesota, as well at the western Upper Peninsula of Michigan. At first, one county of the Northwest Territory had been created to govern what became the modern state of Indiana, and three others would be included in the Indiana Territory:

Former districts of the Louisiana Territory

Former counties of the State of Indiana

Iowa

Counties of Iowa created by Michigan Territory

Counties of Iowa created by Wisconsin Territory

Former counties of the State of Iowa

Kansas

Counties created by Kansas Territory

Several counties were created by the government of Kansas Territory in its western reaches, which included the mining districts of Auraria and Pike's Peak. None were ever organized, and all reverted to unorganized territory when Kansas achieved statehood in 1861. See also the Colorado section, above.

Counties created by the State of Kansas

Kentucky

Because Kentucky began as a political dependency of Virginia, its earliest counties were organized by that government. See also Virginia & Virginia Colony, below

Historic counties created by Virginia

Modern counties created by Virginia

In 1780, Kentucky County was divided by the Virginia government into three counties:

Between 1784 and 1788, six more counties would be created in Kentucky by the Virginia authorities:

These nine counties gained statehood in 1792 as the Commonwealth of Kentucky.

Former counties created by the Commonwealth of Kentucky

Louisiana

The Territory of Orleans was divided into 12 counties on 10 Apr 1805; these were reorganized into parishes on 31 Mar 1807:

Former parishes

Maine

Counties organized by Massachusetts in the future State of Maine

The following counties of Massachusetts were organized by the 1780 constitution into the District of Maine, which became a state in 1820:

See also Massachusetts, below.

Maryland

Massachusetts

Former counties of the colonial era

Counties transferred from other colonies

Counties organized by Massachusetts in the future State of Maine

The following counties of Massachusetts were organized by the 1780 constitution into the District of Maine, which became a state in 1820:

Michigan

Revolutionary era

Former counties of the Northwest, Indiana and Illinois territories

Other counties organized by the Illinois Territory between 1809 and 1819, including Madison, Crawford, Bond, and Edwards, notionally included parts of the future Michigan and Wisconsin territories in their boundaries, but do not appear to have exercised jurisdiction north of the current state line.

Former districts of Michigan Territory

The first governor of Michigan Territory, William Hull, declared a county government into existence shortly after assuming power in 1805, but on the same day, ordered that four districts be organized:

Judicial acts and militia organization took place at the district level; the vestigial county government was never organized. District government lapsed after the British occupation of Detroit and Mackinac in 1812; following the recapture of Detroit in 1813, Hull's replacement as governor (by American reckoning), Lewis Cass, abolished the district scheme. In 1815, the current Wayne County was organized; the county government traces its lineage to the 1796 county of that name.

Former counties of Michigan Territory

Former counties of the State of Michigan

Minnesota

Mississippi

Three Alabama counties were established in the Mississippi Territory that preceded the two states: Baldwin County, Alabama; Madison County, Alabama; Washington County, Alabama.

Missouri

Montana

Nevada

New Hampshire

New Mexico

New York

North Carolina

Counties formed by the colonial government

Counties transferred to Federal jurisdiction, 1790

Seven counties were established by the State of North Carolina in its western territories following independence; the entire overmountain area (the former Washington District), was transferred to Federal jurisdiction in 1790 and formed into the Territory South of the River Ohio. The so-called Southwest Territory would achieve statehood in 1796, as Tennessee.

Renamed counties

North Dakota

Ohio

Oklahoma

Indian Territory

Chickasaw Nation

Choctaw Nation

Oklahoma Territory

Oregon

Pennsylvania

South Carolina

Beware: South Carolina legally dissolved all overarching "districts" (which often included multiple counties) in 1800. Nevertheless, surviving counties were often referred to incorrectly as "districts" as late as the 1860s.

South Dakota

Tennessee

Texas

Utah

In 1849 most Great Basin settlers asked for admission to the Union as the State of Deseret. In 1850 Congress responded by reducing her size and organizing Utah Territory. In 1896 Utah became a state.

Vermont

Virginia

West Virginia

See Virginia & Virginia Colony, above

Wisconsin

Revolutionary-era claims of Virginia

Counties of Wisconsin created by Michigan Territory

Counties of Iowa created by Michigan Territory and transferred to Wisconsin Territory

Counties of Iowa created by Wisconsin Territory

See also

References

  1. ↑ Mitchell, Elaine B., ed. (1975). Alaska Blue Book (Second ed.). Juneau: Alaska Department of Education, Division of State Libraries. p. 141.
  2. ↑ Miller, Marian (1997-06-09). "An Outline History of Juneau Municipal Government". Historic Preservation in Juneau. City and Borough of Juneau. Retrieved 2012-05-08.
  3. ↑ "Certificate of Organization of the Unified Home Rule Municipality of the City and Borough of Sitka" (PDF). Alaska Department of Commerce, Community and Economic Development, Division of Community and Regional Affairs. 1990-06-18. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2010-06-15. Retrieved 2012-05-08.
  4. ↑ Stout, Scot (2012-03-07). "Early History of the County Seats and Courthouses of Clay County, Arkansas". ARGenWeb: Arkansas Genealogy Resources Online. The ARGenWeb Project. Retrieved 2012-05-08.
  5. ↑ Acts and Resolutions of the General Assembly of the State of Arkansas (Session from January 12 to March 28, 1885 ed.). Little Rock, AK: A.M. Woodruff. 1885. p. 41. Retrieved 2012-05-08.
  6. ↑ Acts, Resolutions and Memorials of the General Assembly of the State of Arkansas (Session from November 1 to December 15, 1875 ed.). Little Rock, AK: P.A. Ladue. 1876. pp. 129–131. Retrieved 2012-05-08.
  7. ↑ Exploring Florida Hernando County Maps
  8. 1 2 3 4 5 Bryansite - Louisiana parishes
  9. ↑ Douglas County in McArthur, Lewis A.; Lewis L. McArthur (2003) [1928]. Oregon Geographic Names (Seventh ed.). Portland, Oregon: Oregon Historical Society Press. ISBN 0-87595-277-1. (trade paperback), ISBN 0-87595-278-X (hardcover).
  10. ↑ Marion County in McArthur 2003
  11. ↑ Washington County in McArthur 2003
  12. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 J.D. Lewis, "The Counties from 1664 to Present - In Alphabetical Order" South Carolina – The Counties, http://www.carolana.com/SC/Counties/sc_counties_alphabetical_order.html (accessed January 26, 2011).
  13. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 "Chart of County Formation in Utah" in Division of Archives and Records Service at http://archives.utah.gov/research/guides/county-formation.htm (accessed 11 August 2011).
  14. 1 2 3 4 John Koontz, Political History of Nevada, 5th ed. (Carson City, Nev.: SPO, 1965), 34-98.
  15. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 Deon C. Greer, Atlas of Utah (Ogden, Utah: Utah State College, 1981), 162-64.
  16. 1 2 3 4 "Counties of Nevada" in Nevada History: a Walk in the Past at http://nevada-history.org/county.html (accessed 7 August 2011).
  17. ↑ Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America, 10th ed. (Draper, Utah: Everton Pub., 2002), 442.
  18. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Handybook, 686-88.
  19. ↑ Utah Division of Archives and Records Service "Cedar County (Utah). Probate Court Minutes" in Division of Archives and Records Service at http://www.archives.state.ut.us/research/inventories/17493.html (accessed 10 August 2011).
  20. 1 2 3 Utah Territory Legislative Assembly, Acts, resolutions, and memorials, passed by the first annual, and special sessions, of the Legislative Assembly, of the Territory of Utah, begun and held at Great Salt Lake City, on the 22nd day of September, A.D., 1851 (1852) (G.S.L. City, U.T.: Legislative Assembly, 1852), 162-63. Internet Archive edition.
  21. ↑ Legislative Assembly of the Territory of Utah, Acts, resolutions, and memorials passed and adopted by the Legislative Assembly of the Territory of Utah at the twelfth annual session 1872 (Salt Lake City: Tribune Printing and Publ. Co., 1872), 28. Google books edition.
  22. ↑ Legislative Assembly of the Territory of Utah, Acts, resolutions and memorials passed at the annual sessions of the Legislative Assembly of the Territory of Utah convened . . . 1855 (Great Salt Lake City, 1855), 7. Google books edition.
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