Colorado Counties records differ vastly from county to county both in quality and also quantity. Some have already been carefully preserved and some have been much abused and uncared for. Many Colorado records have simply vanished. For genealogists performing research in Colorado there is no valuable replace for an on-site research of county court house records. For Definitions of all court terms see the Genealogy Encyclopedia.
Colorado Counties – Colorado is divided into 14 counties. Presumably, tax records for each county go back to the time at which each county was formed. However, that isn’t necessarily the case for every single county. So, it’s important to check the county in question. The Colorado State Archives is home to many of the earlier records for each county. Each county has a vital records office. Each of those may hold some of the vital records from the time before statewide recording took place. Probate records are located in the district courts, but court records may be found in district or county courts. Early county records for Colorado may be found at the Colorado State Archives.
Most land records are located at the county seat, along with most marriage records. The County Vital Records offices may also hold older vital records that predate statewide recording. See also a list of links to county and county seat government run websites.
List of Colorado Extinct Counties
Colorado seems to have counties that no longer are in existence. They were established by the state, provincial, or territorial government. A lot of these counties were established and disbanded in the Nineteenth century; county boundaries have modified little since 1900 in the vast number of states. These counties need to be investigated when performing family history and genealogy research. Pay close attention where the courthouse records went to if the county was eliminated or merged with some other county.
- Arapahoe County, Kansas Territory, (1855-08-25 – 1861-01-29) was created but never organized. Reverted to unorganized territory when Kansas joined the Union.
- Broderick County, Kansas Territory, (1859-02-07 – 1861-01-29) was split from Arapahoe County, but never organized. Reverted to unorganized territory when Kansas joined the Union.
- Carbonate County – was a county that existed for only two days in 1879. Carbonate County was created by renaming it to Lake County.
- El Paso County, Kansas Territory, (1859-02-07 – 1861-01-29) was split from Arapahoe County, but never organized. Reverted to unorganized territory when Kansas joined the Union.
- Fremont County, Kansas Territory, (1859-02-07 – 1861-01-29) was split from Arapahoe County, but never organized. Reverted to unorganized territory when Kansas joined the Union.
- Montana County, Kansas Territory, (1859-02-07 – 1861-01-29) was split from Arapahoe County, but never organized. Reverted to unorganized territory when Kansas joined the Union.
- Oro County, Kansas Territory, (1859-02-07 – 1861-01-29) was split from Arapahoe County, but never organized. Reverted to unorganized territory when Kansas joined the Union.
- Peketon County, Kansas Territory, (1859-02-07 – 1861-01-29) was created but never organized. Reverted to unorganized territory when Kansas joined the Union.
- Arrappahoe County, Jefferson Territory, (November 1859 – 1861-02-28) was one of the 12 counties created by the extralegal Territory of Jefferson.
- Cheyenne County, Jefferson Territory, (November 1859 – 1861-02-28) was one of the 12 counties created by the extralegal Territory of Jefferson.
- El Paso County, Jefferson Territory, (November 1859 – 1861-02-28) was one of the 12 counties created by the extralegal Territory of Jefferson.
- Fountain County, Jefferson Territory, (November 1859 – 1861-02-28) was one of the 12 counties created by the extralegal Territory of Jefferson.
- Heele County, Jefferson Territory, (November 1859 – 1861-02-28) was one of the 12 counties created by the extralegal Territory of Jefferson.
- Jackson County, Jefferson Territory, (November 1859 – 1861-02-28) was one of the 12 counties created by the extralegal Territory of Jefferson.
- Jefferson County, Jefferson Territory, (November 1859 – 1861-02-28) was one of the 12 counties created by the extralegal Territory of Jefferson.
- Montana County, Jefferson Territory, (November 1859 – 1861-02-28) was one of the 12 counties created by the extralegal Territory of Jefferson.
- North County, Jefferson Territory, (November 1859 – 1861-02-28) was one of the 12 counties created by the extralegal Territory of Jefferson.
- Park County, Jefferson Territory, (November 1859 – 1861-02-28) was one of the 12 counties created by the extralegal Territory of Jefferson.
- Saratoga County, Jefferson Territory, (November 1859 – 1861-02-28) was one of the 12 counties created by the extralegal Territory of Jefferson.
- St. Vrains County, Jefferson Territory, (November 1859 – 1861-02-28) was one of the 12 counties created by the extralegal Territory of Jefferson.
- Guadalupe County, Colorado Territory, (1861-11-01 – 1861-11-07) was one of the 17 original counties created by the Territory of Colorado. The county was renamed Conejos County after only six days.
- Greenwood County, Colorado Territory, (1870-02-11 – 1874-02-06) was created from former Cheyenne and Arapaho tribal land and the eastern portion of Huerfano County. The county was abolished four years later, and its territory split between Elbert County and Bent County.
- Platte County, Colorado Territory, (1872-02-09 – 1874-02-09) was created from the eastern portion of Weld County. The county was abolished two years later after organizers failed to secure voter approval, and the territory of the county was returned to Weld County.
- Carbonate County, Colorado, (1879-02-08 – 1879-02-10). Lake County was renamed Carbonate County in 1879. Only two days later, Carbonate County was split into the new Chaffee County and the re-renamed Lake County.
- Uncompaghre County, Colorado, (1883-02-27 – 1883-03-02). Ouray County was renamed Uncompaghre County for only four days in 1883.
- South Arapahoe County, Colorado, (1902-11-15 – 1903-04-11) was one of three counties created from Arapahoe County in 1902. The name was changed back to Arapahoe County after five months.
List of Colorado Counties with Burned Courthouses
- Conejos County Courthouse Some loss of records occurred by fire.
- Douglas County Courthouse burned in 1978 but minimal loss of records.
List of Colorado Counties
List of Colorado Counties
County | Date Formed | Parent County | County Seat |
---|---|---|---|
Adams | 1861 | Arapahoe County. | Brighton |
Alamosa | 1913 | Costilla and Conejos counties. | Alamosa |
Arapahoe | 1861 | Created as one of the 17 original counties of the Territory of Colorado | Littleton |
Archuleta | 1885 | Conejos County | Pagosa Springs |
Baca | 1889 | Las Animas County | Springfield |
Bent | 1870 | Huerfano County and former Cheyenne and Arapaho tribal land. | Las Animas |
Boulder | 1861 | Created as one of the 17 original counties of the Territory of Colorado. | Boulder |
Broomfield | 2001 | Boulder, Adams, Jefferson, and Weld counties and reorganized as a consolidated city and county. | Broomfield |
Chaffee | 1879 | Carbonate County. | Salida |
Cheyenne | 1889 | Elbert and Bent counties. | Cheyenne Wells |
Clear Creek | 1861 | Created as one of the 17 original counties of the Territory of Colorado. | Georgetown |
Conejos | 1861 | Guadalupe County, one of the 17 original counties of theTerritory of Colorado, was renamed Conejos County after six days on November 7, 1861. | Conejos |
Costilla | 1861 | Created as one of the 17 original counties of the Territory of Colorado. | San Luis |
Crowley | 1911 | Otero County. | Ordway |
Custer | 1877 | Fremont County. | Westcliffe |
Delta | 1883 | Gunnison County. | Delta |
Denver | 1901 | The original Arapahoe County Seat was split from Arapahoe County and reorganized as a consolidated city and county. | Denver |
Dolores | 1881 | Ouray County. | Dove Creek |
Douglas | 1861 | Created as one of the 17 original counties of the Territory of Colorado. | Castle Rock |
Eagle | 1883 | Summit County. | Eagle |
Elbert | 1874 | Douglas County. | Kiowa |
El Paso | 1861 | Created as one of the 17 original counties of the Territory of Colorado. | Colorado Springs |
Fremont | 1861 | Created as one of the 17 original counties of the Territory of Colorado. | Cañon City |
Garfield | 1883 | Summit County. | Glenwood Springs |
Gilpin | 1861 | Created as one of the 17 original counties of the Territory of Colorado. | Central City |
Grand | 1874 | Summit County. | Hot Sulphur Springs |
Gunnison | 1877 | Lake County. | Gunnison |
Hinsdale | 1874 | Lake, Conejos, and Costilla counties. | Lake City |
Huerfano | 1861 | Created as one of the 17 original counties of the Territory of Colorado. | Walsenburg |
Jackson | 1909 | Larimer County. | Walden |
Jefferson | 1861 | Created as one of the 17 original counties of the Territory of Colorado. | Golden |
Kiowa | 1889 | Bent County. | Eads |
Kit Carson | 1889 | Elbert County. | Burlington |
Lake | 1879 | Created as one of the 17 original counties of the Territory of Colorado. Renamed Carbonate County for the two days from February 8–10, 1879. | Leadville |
La Plata | 1874 | Lake and Conejos counties. | Durango |
Larimer | 1861 | Created as one of the 17 original counties of the Territory of Colorado. | Fort Collins |
Las Animas | 1866 | Huerfano County. | Trinidad |
Lincoln | 1889 | Elbert and Bent counties. | Hugo |
Logan | 1887 | Weld County. | Sterling |
Mesa | 1883 | Gunnison County. | Grand Junction |
Mineral | 1893 | Hinsdale, Rio Grande, and Saguache counties. | Creede |
Moffatt | 1911 | Routt County. | Craig |
Montezuma | 1889 | La Plata County. | Cortez |
Montrose | 1883 | Gunnison County. | Montrose |
Morgan | 1889 | Weld County. | Fort Morgan |
Otero | 1889 | Bent County. | La Junta |
Ouray | 1883 | Hinsdale and Lake counties. RenamedUncompaghre County for four days from 1883-02-27, to 1883-03-02. | Ouray |
Park | 1861 | Created as one of the 17 original counties of the Territory of Colorado. | Fairplay |
Phillips | 1889 | Logan County. | Holyoke |
Pitkin | 1881 | Gunnison County. | Aspen |
Prowers | 1889 | Bent County. | Lamar |
Pueblo | 1861 | Created as one of the 17 original counties of the Territory of Colorado. | Pueblo |
Rio Blanco | 1889 | Garfield County. | Meeker |
Rio Grande | 1874 | Costilla County and Conejos County counties. | Del Norte |
Routt | 1877 | Grand County. | Steamboat Springs |
Saguache | 1866 | Lake and Costilla counties. | Saguache |
San Juan | 1876 | Lake County. | Silverton |
San Miguel | 1861 | San Juan County. | Telluride |
Sedgwick | 1889 | Logan County. | Julesburg |
Summit | 1861 | Created as one of the 17 original counties of the Territory of Colorado. | Breckenridge |
Teller | 1899 | El Paso and Fremont counties. | Cripple Creek |
Washington | 1887 | Weld County. | Akron |
Weld | 1861 | Created as one of the 17 original counties of the Territory of Colorado. | Greeley |
Yuma | 1889 | Washington County. | Wray |