Klamath County, California

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Klamath County
County
Klamath River mouth aerial view.jpg
Estuary of the Klamath River on the Pacific Ocean coast.
Map of California highlighting Klamath County.svg
Location within the U.S. state of California
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California's location within the U.S.
Coordinates: 41°N123°W / 41°N 123°W / 41; -123
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StateFlag of California.svg  California
Founded1851

Klamath County was a county of California from 1851 to 1874. During its existence, the county seat moved twice and ultimately portions of the territory it once had were carved up and added to nearby counties. It was formed from the northwestern portion of Trinity County, and originally included all of the northwestern part of the state, from the Mad River in the south to Oregon in the north, from the Pacific Ocean in the west to the middle of what is now Siskiyou County in the east. It is the only county in California to be disestablished. [1]

Contents

History

The original county seat was Trinidad, on the county's southwestern coast. In 1854 the county seat was moved to Crescent City, because of its larger population. But the western portion of the county was unrepresentative of the mining interests in the eastern portion of the county, and so, in 1856, the county seat was moved inland, to Orleans Bar, now Orleans. [1] In 1857, Del Norte County, including Crescent City, was split off from Klamath County.

The county's economy was never healthy after the gold rush. The area was contested with indigenous tribes. The "Klamath and Salmon River Indian "War""and the 1858-1864 "Bald Hills War" involved European-American vigilantes hunting down and killing most indigenous adult males and killing, capturing, or enslaving women and children. Many of the captive indigenous subsequently died of starvation and exposure at Fort Humboldt. [2] The European-American settler's economy suffered from the effects of the Indian "wars", which disrupted the supplies to the settlements from the coastal towns. Worse still was the devastating effects of the Great Flood of 1862 which swept away the riverside settlements, mining works and ferries.

In 1874 Klamath County was finally abolished, divided between Siskiyou and Humboldt counties. Present day Del Norte County occupies part of Klamath County.

Towns and other settlements of Klamath County

See also

Related Research Articles

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Klamath National Forest</span> National forest in California, US

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The Six Rivers National Forest is a U.S. National Forest located in the northwestern corner of California. It was established on June 3rd, 1947 by U.S. President Harry S. Truman from portions of Klamath, Siskiyou and Trinity National Forests. Its over one million acres (4,000 km2) of land contain a variety of ecosystems and 137,000 acres (550 km2) of old growth forest. It lies in parts of four counties; in descending order of forestland area they are Del Norte, Humboldt, Trinity, and Siskiyou counties. The forest is named after the Eel, Van Duzen, Klamath, Trinity, Mad, and Smith rivers, which pass through or near the forest's boundaries.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sawyers Bar, California</span> Unincorporated community in California, United States

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Negro Flat was a placer gold mining camp on the Salmon River, now located in Siskiyou County, California. It was located originally in Trinity County, in 1850.

Black Bear was a gold mining town in Klamath County, now in unincorporated Siskiyou County, California.

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Blue Creek is a 23-mile (37 km) long stream in the Northern Coast Ranges of California, and is the lowermost major tributary of the Klamath River. The creek begins in Elk Valley, in the Siskiyou Wilderness of the Six Rivers National Forest in Del Norte County. It flows southwest, receiving several major tributaries including the East Fork, Crescent City Fork, Nickowitz Creek, Slide Creek and the West Fork. It flows into the Klamath River in Humboldt County, 16 miles (26 km) upstream from where the Klamath empties into the Pacific Ocean.

The North Fork Salmon River is a 36.9-mile (59.4 km) river in Siskiyou County, California. It joins with the South Fork Salmon River at Forks of Salmon to form the Salmon River, a major tributary of the Klamath River. Originating at English Lakes near 7,322-foot (2,232 m) English Peak in the Salmon Mountains, the North Fork drains about 204 square miles (530 km2) of rugged, forested terrain. The entire river is located within the Klamath National Forest, with the headwaters located in the Marble Mountain Wilderness.

The South Fork Salmon River is a 39.5-mile (63.6 km) river in Siskiyou County, California and is the larger of two tributaries that join to form the Salmon River, the other being the North Fork. It begins in the Salmon Mountains, on the border of Siskiyou and Trinity County, about 15 miles (24 km) southeast of Cecilville, and flows generally northwest through the Salmon Mountains to its confluence with the North Fork at Forks of Salmon. The South Fork drains an area of 290 square miles (750 km2), located entirely in the Klamath National Forest, with a significant portion in the Trinity Alps Wilderness.

References

  1. 1 2 Turner, Dennis W.; Turner, Gloria H. (2010). Place Names of Humboldt County, California: A Compendium 1542-2009. Orangevale, Ca: Dennis W. & Gloria H. Turner. p. 144. ISBN   978-0-9629617-2-4.
  2. ↑ <Madley, Benjamin, "An American Genocide: The United States and the California Indian Catastrophe", Yale University Press, 2016, pages 234-237>
  3. 1 2 3 Theodore Henry Hittell, History of California, Volume 3, N. J. Stone, San Francisco, 1897, p.140
  4. 1 2 Hubert Howe Bancroft, History of California, Vol. VI, 1848-1859, The History company, San Francisco, 1888, p.370, note

41°18′N123°30′W / 41.3°N 123.5°W / 41.3; -123.5

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