Sandoval County, New Mexico

Sandoval County Education, Geography, and History

Sandoval County is a county located in the state of New Mexico. Based on the 2010 census, the population was 131,561, making it the fourth-most populous county in New Mexico. The county seat is Bernalillo.

Sandoval County is part of the Albuquerque, NM Metropolitan Statistical Area.

Etymology - Origin of Sandoval County Name

The county was named for the Sandoval family who were early settlers.

Demographics:

County QuickFacts: CensusBureau Quick Facts

Sandoval County History

Sandoval County was established 10 March 1903. The county seat is Bernalillo. The county was named for the Sandoval family who were early settlers. This county has many attractions like the Bandelier National Monument, Coronado State Monument, many ancient Indian ruins, and excellent hunting and fishing. Tourism is a major source of commerce.

Geography: Land and Water

As reported by the Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 3,716 square miles (9,620 km²), of which 3,711 square miles (9,610 km²) is land and 5.3 square miles (14 km²) (0.1%) is water.

The highest point in the county is the summit of Redondo Peak, at 11,254 feet (3,430 m).

A relatively small portion of the county exists as a geographically separate exclave between Los Alamos County and Santa Fe County. This came about when Los Alamos County was created; the land that became the exclave would have been part of Los Alamos but was excluded owing to its sacred status among the local Indians. Rather than be ceded to neighboring Santa Fe (or Los Alamos) it has remained part of Sandoval.

Neighboring Counties

Bordering counties are as follows:

• Rio Arriba County - north
• Los Alamos County - northeast
• Santa Fe County - east
• Bernalillo County - south
• Cibola County - southwest
• McKinley County - west
• San Juan County - northwest

Education

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