Idaho Counties: History and Information

Find a brief history of Idaho Counties

The State of Idaho  is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States of America. The state's largest city and capital is Boise. Residents are called "Idahoans." Idaho was admitted to the Union on 3 July 1890 as the 43rd state.

Humans may have been present in the Idaho area as long as 14,500 years ago. Excavations at Wilson Butte Cave near Twin Falls in 1959 revealed evidence of human activity, including arrowheads, that rank among the oldest dated artifacts in North America. Native American tribes predominant in the area included the Nez Perce in the north and the Northern and Western Shoshone in the south.

Idaho, as part of the Oregon Country, was claimed by both the United States and Great Britain until the United States gained undisputed jurisdiction in 1846. Between then and the creation of the Idaho Territory in 1863, parts of the present-day state were included in the Oregon, Washington, and Dakota Territories. The new territory included most of present-day Idaho, Montana, and Wyoming. The first organized communities, within the present borders of Idaho, were established in 1860.

When the Idaho Territory was created in March 1863, there were five original counties: Shoshone, Nez Perce, Idaho, Boise, and Missoula. Kootenai, Owyhee, and Oneida were created by 1865, Ada was created in 1866, and when the territory reached Idaho's present day dimensions in 1868, Lemhi was formed. By 1880, 13 counties were created. Ten years later, when Idaho became a state, 18 counties were created. In 1893, Fremont and Bannock counties were created. By 1900, Idaho had 21 counties. Ten years later, only two new counties were created. Between 1910 and 1920, 21 new counties were created, bringing the number of counties to 44, where it remains today.

After some tribulation as a territory, including the chaotic transfer of the territorial capital from Lewiston to Boise, disenfranchisement of the large Mormon minority and a federal attempt to split the territory between Washington Territory and the state of Nevada, Idaho achieved statehood in 1890. The economy of the state, which had been primarily supported by metal mining, shifted towards agriculture and tourism.

Defunct Idaho counties

• Alturas County: A huge south-central Idaho county formed in 1864. Abolished in 1895.
• Lah-Toh County: North Idaho county formed in 1864. Abolished in 1867.
• Logan County: Formed by an 1889 partition of Alturas County. Abolished in 1895.