Yavapai County was among the four created by the first Territorial Legislature on November 8, 1864. The county area was so tremendous that subsequently it was divided to form six complete counties and parts of others. As originally established, Yavapai County reached from the New Mexico line on the east to the middle of the Gila River on the south and north to the Utah boundary. Its western boundary has not changed since its creation. From Yavapai as originally constituted have been formed, Gila, Maricopa, Coconino, and Apache Counties, the last named having since been cut into Apache and Navajo counties. Despite its reduction in area, Yavapai remains larger than the state of New Jersey. Current county acreage is 5,179,240. The county seat is Prescott, which from 1864 to 1867 and again from 1877 to 1889 also served as the territorial capital.

The history of Yavapai county is studded with stories about fabulous placers and mines, about Indian fights, and about pioneer settlements. Yavapai has always been a noted mining and stock raising county. In 1930 the county enclosed nearly forty percent of the patented mineral area of Arizona. This is still largely true, despite uranium developments elsewhere in the state.

Barnes, Will C.; Granger, Byrd (ed.). Arizona Place Names. University of Arizona Press. 1960
p. 330

"After the Indian Tribe. One of the four original counties created by First Territorial Legislature, 1864. Often called 'The Mother of Counties.'"

Barnes, Will C. Arizona Place Names University of Arizona Press. 1997.
p. 497

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Websites

County Profile-Arizona Department of Commerce
http://www.commerce.state.az.us/pdf/county/yavapai.pdf

Local Government Website
http://www.co.yavapai.az.us/

Arizonan.com- Yavapai County
http://arizonan.com/YavapaiCounty/

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Cities of County

Ash Fork
Bagdad
Black Canyon City
Chino Valley
Clarkdale
Congress
Cordes Lakes
Cornville
Cottonwood
Crown King
Jerome
Lake Montezuma, McGuireville, Rim Rock
Mayer
Prescott-County Seat
Prescott Valley
Seligman
Verde Valley
Yarnell Peeples Valley

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Sites to See

Yavapai County Library District
http://www.co.yavapai.az.us/departments/lib_dist/LibraryMain.asp

Camp Verde Historical Society
435 South Main St.
Camp Verde, AZ 86322
(928) 567-9560
http://www.campverde.org/cv_historical.htm

Fort Verde

Jerome Historical Society
P.O. 156 Jerome, AZ 86331
(928) 634-1066
http://www.jeromehistoricalsociety.org/

Jerome State Historic Park
P.O. Box D, Jerome, Arizona 86331
(928) 634-5381
http://www.pr.state.az.us/parkhtml/jerome.html

Sharlot Hall Museum
415 West Gurley Street  Prescott, Arizona 86301
http://www.sharlot.org/index.shtml

Clemenceau Heritage Museum
1 N. Willard St., Cottonwood, AZ 86326-
(520) 634-2868

Yavapai Heritage Foundation,
P.O. Box 61, Prescott, 86302

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Books/Manuscripts found in the ASU Library Catalog

History Books for Reference

Echoes of the past : tales of old Yavapai / edited and with an introd. by Robert C.Stevens.
F817 .Y3 E3 v.1

Yavapai County, Arizona : the treasure vault of the Southwest / issued by the Yavapai Commercial Club, Prescott, Ariz
F817.Y3 Y39x

Sparkes, Grace. Papers, 1904-1953 [manuscript]
MS FM MSS 12

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