County (United States)

Template:Short description Template:Use American English Template:Use mdy dates Template:Infobox subdivision type Template:Political divisions of the United States

In the United States, a county or county equivalent is an administrative subdivision of a state or territory, typically with defined geographic boundaries and some level of governmental authority.<ref name=NACO>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The term "county" is used in 48 states, while Louisiana and Alaska have functionally equivalent subdivisions called parishes and boroughs, respectively.<ref name=NACO/> Counties and other local governments exist as a matter of U.S. state law, so the specific governmental powers of counties may vary widely between the states, with many providing some level of services to civil townships, municipalities, and unincorporated areas. Certain municipalities are in multiple counties. Some municipalities have been consolidated with their county government to form consolidated city-counties or have been legally separated from counties altogether to form independent cities. Conversely, counties in Connecticut and Rhode Island, eight of Massachusetts's 14 counties, and Alaska's Unorganized Borough have no government power, existing only as geographic distinctions.

The United States Census Bureau uses the term "county equivalent" to describe places that are comparable to counties, but called by different names. Louisiana parishes, the organized boroughs of Alaska, independent cities, and the District of Columbia are equivalent to counties for administrative purposes. Alaska's Unorganized Borough is further divided into 11 census areas that are statistically equivalent to counties. In 2024, the U.S. Census Bureau began to also count Connecticut's Councils of Governments, which took over some of the regional powers from the state's former county governments, as county equivalents.

Territories of the United States do not have counties; instead, the United States Census Bureau also divides them into county equivalents. The U.S. Census Bureau counts American Samoa's districts and atolls as county equivalents.<ref name="CensusT">"2010 FIPS Codes for Counties and County Equivalent Entities". U.S. Census Bureau. Retrieved July 6, 2018.</ref><ref name="CensusCounties2"/> American Samoa locally has places called "counties", but these entities are considered to be "minor civil divisions" (not true counties) by the U.S. Census Bureau.<ref name="CensusCounties2"/>

The number of counties per state ranges from the three counties of Delaware to the 254 counties of Texas. County populations also vary widely: in 2017, according to the Census Bureau, more than half the U.S. population was concentrated in just 143 of the more than 3,000 counties, or just 4.6% of all counties; the five most populous counties, ordered from most to least, are Los Angeles County, California; Cook County, Illinois; Harris County, Texas; Maricopa County, Arizona; and San Diego County, California.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Template:As of, there are 3,144 counties and county-equivalents in the 50 states and the District of Columbia.<ref name=PopEstCounties>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> If the 100 county equivalents in the U.S. territories are counted, then the total is 3,244 counties and county-equivalents in the United States.<ref name="tallies">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name="changes">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name="CensusT"/><ref name="CensusCounties2"/>Template:Efn

HistoryEdit

The idea of counties originated with the counties of England. English (after 1707, British) colonists brought to their colonies in North America a political subdivision that they already used in the British metropole: the counties. Counties were among the earliest units of local government established in the Thirteen Colonies that would become the United States. Virginia created the first counties in order to ease the administrative workload in Jamestown. The House of Burgesses divided the colony first into four "incorporations" in 1617 and finally into eight shires (or counties) in 1634: James City, Henrico, Charles City, Charles River, Warrosquyoake, Accomac, Elizabeth City, and Warwick River.<ref name="Virginia">Template:Cite book</ref> America's oldest intact county court records can be found at Eastville, Virginia, in Northampton (originally Accomac) County, dating to 1632.<ref name="Eastville">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Maryland established its first county, St. Mary's in 1637. In 1639, the Province of Maine founded York County. Massachusetts followed in 1643. Pennsylvania and New York delegated significant power and responsibility from the colony government to county governments and thereby established a pattern for most of the United States, although counties remained relatively weak in New England.<ref name= "Reynolds">Template:Cite book</ref>

When independence came, the framers of the Constitution left the matter to the states. Subsequently, state constitutions conceptualized county governments as arms of the state.<ref name="naco"/> Louisiana instead adopted the local divisions called parishes that dated back to both the Spanish colonial and French colonial periods when the land was dominated by the Catholic Church.<ref name="Bryansite">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> In the twentieth century, the role of local governments strengthened and counties began providing more services, acquiring home rule and county commissions to pass local ordinances pertaining to their unincorporated areas.<ref name="naco">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> In 1955, delegates to the Alaska Constitutional Convention wanted to avoid the traditional county system and adopted their own unique model with different types of boroughs varying in powers and duties.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

In some states, these powers are partly or mostly devolved to the counties' smaller divisions usually called townships, though in New York, New England and Wisconsin they are called "towns". The county may or may not be able to override its townships on certain matters, depending on state law.

The newest county in the United States is the city and county of Broomfield, Colorado, established in 2001 as a consolidated city-county, previously part of four counties.<ref name="Broomfield's 50 year history">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name="Broomfield's History">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The newest county equivalents are the Alaskan census areas of Chugach and Copper River, both established in 2019,<ref name=":0">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> and the Alaskan boroughs of Petersburg established in 2013, Wrangell established in 2008, and Skagway established in 2007.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

County variationsEdit

Consolidated city-countiesEdit

{{#invoke:Labelled list hatnote|labelledList|Main article|Main articles|Main page|Main pages}} A consolidated city-county is simultaneously a city, which is a municipality (municipal corporation), and a county, which is an administrative division of a state, having the powers and responsibilities of both types of entities. The city limit or jurisdiction is synonymous with the county line, as the two administrative entities become a non-dichotomous single entity. For this reason, a consolidated city-county is officially remarked as name of city – name of county (i.e., Augusta–Richmond County in Georgia). The same is true of the boroughs of New York City, each of which is coextensive with a county of New York State. For those entities in which the city uses the same name as the county, city and county of name may be used (i.e., City and County of Denver in Colorado).

Similarly, some of Alaska's boroughs have merged with their principal cities, creating unified city-boroughs. Some such consolidations and mergers have created cities that rank among the geographically largest cities in the world, though often with population densities far below those of most urban areas.

There are 40 consolidated city-counties in the U.S.,<ref name=NACO/> including Augusta–Richmond County; the City and County of Denver, Colorado; the City and County of Honolulu, Hawaii; Indianapolis–Marion County, Indiana; Jacksonville–Duval County, Florida; Louisville–Jefferson County, Kentucky; Lexington–Fayette County, Kentucky; Kansas City–Wyandotte County, Kansas; Nashville–Davidson County, Tennessee; New Orleans–Orleans Parish, Louisiana; the City and County of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; City and County of San Francisco, California; and Lynchburg-Moore County, Tennessee

A consolidated city-county may still contain independent municipalities maintaining some governmental powers that did not merge with the rest of the county. For example, the government of Jacksonville–Duval County, Florida, still provides county-level services to the four independent municipalities within its borders: Atlantic Beach, Baldwin, Jacksonville Beach, and Neptune Beach.

County equivalentsEdit

The term county equivalents is used by the United States Census Bureau to describe divisions that are comparable to counties but called by different names:<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Alaska boroughs: The state adopted the term "borough" instead of "county" to reflect Alaska's system with different classes of boroughs varying in governmental powers.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation

|CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Alaska census areas: Nearly half of the land area of Alaska is not contained within any of Alaska's 19 organized boroughs. This vast area, larger than France and Germany combined, is officially referred to by the Alaska state government as the Unorganized Borough and outside of other incorporated borough limits, has no independent "county" government, although several incorporated city governments exist within its boundaries; the majority of it is governed and run by the State of Alaska as an extension of state government.Template:Refn The United States Census Bureau, in cooperation with the Alaska state government for census and electoral districting purposes, has divided the Unorganized Borough into 11 census areas for statistical purposes only.<ref group=lower-alpha>These 11 statistical areas are used solely by the United States Census Bureau to tabulate population and other census statistics within the Unorganized Borough; they have no legal basis in Alaska state or federal law other than for electoral representation and federal financial assistance purposes.</ref>
Louisiana parishes: The usage of the term "parish" for a territorial entity or local government in Louisiana dates back to both the Spanish colonial and French colonial periods when the land was dominated by the Catholic Church. New Orleans is a consolidated city-parish.
Independent cities: These are cities that legally belong to no county. They differ from consolidated city-counties in that in the case of a consolidated city-county, the county at least nominally exists, whereas in the case of an independent city, no county even nominally exists.<ref>Cities 101 – Consolidations, from National League of Cities</ref> There are 41 such cities in the United States: Baltimore, Maryland; Carson City, Nevada; St. Louis, Missouri; and all 38 cities in Virginia, where any area incorporated as a city is outside of the county jurisdiction.<ref name="VaPop">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation

|CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Washington, D.C.,<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation

|CitationClass=web }}</ref> outside the jurisdiction of any state, has a special status. The City of Washington comprises the entirety of the District of Columbia, which, in accordance with Article 1, Section 8 of the U.S. Constitution, is under the jurisdiction of the U.S. Congress. When founded in 1801, the District consisted of two counties and three cities. In 1846, Alexandria County (which now forms Arlington County and a portion of the independent city of Alexandria)—including the then City of Alexandria—was given back to Virginia. In 1871, the three remaining entities—the City of Washington, City of Georgetown, and Washington County (which was coterminous with the district)—were merged into a consolidated government of District of Columbia by an act of Congress. Georgetown was abolished as a city by another act in 1895.

Connecticut councils of governments (beginning in 2024): County governments were abolished in Connecticut in 1960. Regional councils of governments (COGs) have since been developed as a means of cooperation and coordination between municipalities. Application for the COGs to be considered county equivalents for statistical purposes was made to the Census Bureau in 2019, approved in 2022, and was fully implemented by 2024.<ref>Template:Cite press release</ref>

Consolidated city-counties are not designated county equivalents for administrative purposes; since both the city and the county at least nominally exist, they are properly classified as counties in their own right. Likewise, the boroughs of New York City are coextensive with counties and are therefore by definition also not county equivalents.

TerritoriesEdit

There are technically no counties in U.S. territories. American Samoa has its own counties, but the U.S. Census Bureau does not treat them as counties (instead, the U.S. Census Bureau treats American Samoa's three districts and two atolls as county equivalents).<ref name="CensusT"/><ref name="CensusCounties2"/> American Samoa's counties are treated as minor civil divisions.<ref name="CensusCounties2"/> Most territories are directly divided into municipalities or similar units, which are mostly treated as equivalent of counties for statistical purposes:<ref name="CensusT"/><ref name= "USMOICounties">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name="CensusCounties2"/><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

The 78 municipalities of Puerto Rico
The 2 districts of the United States Virgin Islands, or the 3 main islands of the United States Virgin Islands
The 4 municipalities of the Northern Mariana Islands
The 3 districts of American Samoa
The 2 atolls of American Samoa
The 9 islands of the U.S. Minor Outlying Islands

The U.S. Census Bureau counts all of Guam as one county equivalent (with the FIPS code 66010),<ref name="CensusT"/><ref name="CensusCounties2">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> while the USGS counts Guam's election districts (villages) as county equivalents.<ref name="USGSCounties">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The U.S. Census Bureau counts the 3 main islands in the U.S. Virgin Islands as county equivalents, while the USGS counts the districts of the U.S. Virgin Islands (of which there are 2) as county equivalents.<ref name="CensusT"/><ref name="USGSCounties"/>

Names and etymologiesEdit

Template:See also Common sources of county names are names of people, geographic features, places in other states or countries, and animals. Quite a few counties bear names of Native American, French, or Spanish origin.<ref name="Kane 2004 vii-xii">Template:Cite book</ref>

Counties are most often named for people, often political figures or early settlers, with over 2,100 of the 3,144 total so named. The most common county name, with 31, is Washington County, for America's first president, George Washington. Up until 1871, there was a Washington County within the District of Columbia, but it was dissolved by the District of Columbia Organic Act. Jefferson County, for Thomas Jefferson, is next with 26. The most recent president to have a county named for him was Warren G. Harding, reflecting the slowing rate of county creation since New Mexico and Arizona became states in 1912. The most common names for counties not named after a president are Franklin (25), Clay (18), and Montgomery (18).

After people, the next most common source of county names are geographic features and locations, with some counties even being named after counties in other states, or for places in other countries, such as the United Kingdom (the latter is most common in the area of the original Thirteen Colonies in the case of the United Kingdom, or in places which had a large number of immigrants from a particular area for other countries). The most common geographic county name is Lake. Words from Native American languages, as well as the names of Native American leaders and tribes, lend their names to many counties.<ref>Bright, William (2004). Native American Placenames of the United States. Norman: University of Oklahoma Press. Template:ISBN</ref> Quite a few counties bear names of French or Spanish origin, such as Marquette County being named after French missionary Father Jacques Marquette.<ref name="Kane 2004 vii-xii" />

The county's equivalent in the state of Louisiana, the parish (Fr. paroisse civile and Sp. parroquia) took its name during the state's French and Spanish colonial periods. Before the Louisiana Purchase and granting of statehood, government was often administered in towns where major church parishes were located. Of the original 19 civil parishes of Louisiana that date from statehood in 1807, nine were named after the Roman Catholic parishes from which they were governed.

County governmentEdit

OrganizationEdit

The structure and powers of a county government may be defined by the general law of the state or by a charter specific to that county. States may allow only general-law counties, only charter counties, or both. Generally, general-law local governments have less autonomy than chartered local governments.<ref>General law local government, from Ballotpedia</ref>

Counties are usually governed by an elected body, variously called the county commission, board of supervisors, commissioners' court, county council, county court, or county legislature. In cases in which a consolidated city-county or independent city exists, a city council usually governs city/county or city affairs. In some counties, day-to-day operations are overseen by an elected county executive or by a chief administrative officer or county administrator who reports to the board, the mayor, or both.

In many states, the board in charge of a county holds powers that transcend all three traditional branches of government. It has the legislative power to enact laws for the county; it has the executive power to oversee the executive operations of county government; and it has quasi-judicial power with regard to certain limited matters (such as hearing appeals from the planning commission if one exists).

In many states, several important officials are elected separately from the board of commissioners or supervisors and cannot be fired by the board. These positions may include county clerk, county treasurer, county surrogate, sheriff, and others.

District attorneys or state attorneys are usually state-level as opposed to county-level officials, but in many states, counties and state judicial districts have coterminous boundaries.

The site of a county's administration, and often the county courthouse, is generally called the county seat ("parish seat" in Louisiana, "borough seat" in Alaska, or "shire town" in several New England counties). The county seat usually resides in a municipality. However, some counties may have multiple seats or no seat. In some counties with no incorporated municipalities, a large settlement may serve as the county seat.

Scope of powerEdit

The power of county governments varies widely from state to state, as does the relationship between counties and incorporated cities.

The powers of counties arise from state law and vary widely.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> In Connecticut and Rhode Island,<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> counties are geographic entities, but not governmental jurisdictions. At the other extreme, Maryland counties and the county equivalent City of Baltimore handle almost all services, including public education, although the state retains an active oversight authority with many of these services.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Counties in Hawaii also handle almost all services since there is no formal level of government (municipality, public education, or otherwise) existing below that of the county in the state.<ref name="osman">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

In most Midwestern and Northeastern states, counties are further subdivided into townships or towns, which sometimes exercise local powers or administration. Throughout the United States, counties may contain other independent, self-governing municipalities.

Minimal scopeEdit

In New England, counties function at most as judicial court districts and sheriff's departments (presently, in Connecticut only as judicial court districts—and in Rhode Island, they have lost both those functions and most others but they are still used by the United States Census Bureau and some other federal agencies for some federal functions), and most of the governmental authority below the state level is in the hands of towns and cities. In several of Maine's sparsely populated counties, small towns rely on the county for law enforcement, and in New Hampshire several social programs are administered at the state level. In Connecticut, Rhode Island, and parts of Massachusetts, counties are now only geographic designations, and they do not have any governmental powers. All government is either done at the state level or at the municipal level. In Connecticut and parts of Massachusetts, regional councils have been established to partially fill the void left behind by the abolished county governments.<ref group=lower-alpha>Unlike in Massachusetts, Connecticut's regional councils do not conform to the old county lines, but rather, they are composed of towns that share the same geographic area and have similar demographics.</ref> The regional councils' authority is limited compared with a county government—they have authority only over infrastructure and land use planning, distribution of state and federal funds for infrastructure projects, emergency preparedness, and limited law enforcement duties.

Moderate scopeEdit

In the Mid-Atlantic and Midwest, counties typically provide, at a minimum, courts, public utilities, libraries, hospitals, public health services, parks, roads, law enforcement, and jails. There is usually a county registrar, recorder, or clerk (the exact title varies) who collects vital statistics, holds elections (sometimes in coordination with a separate elections office or commission), and prepares or processes certificates of births, deaths, marriages, and dissolutions (divorce decrees). The county recorder normally maintains the official record of all real estate transactions. Other key county officials include the coroner/medical examiner, treasurer, assessor, auditor, comptroller, and district attorney.

In most states, the county sheriff is the chief law enforcement officer in the county. However, except in major emergencies where clear chains of command are essential, the county sheriff normally does not directly control the police departments of city governments, but merely cooperates with them (e.g., under mutual aid pacts). Thus, the most common interaction between county and city law enforcement personnel is when city police officers deliver suspects to sheriff's deputies for detention or incarceration in the county jail.

In most states, the state courts and local law enforcement are organized and implemented along county boundaries, but nearly all of the substantive and procedural law adjudicated in state trial courts originates from the state legislature and state appellate courts. In other words, most criminal defendants are prosecuted for violations of state law, not local ordinances, and if they, the district attorney, or police seek reforms to the criminal justice system, they will usually have to direct their efforts towards the state legislature rather than the county (which merely implements state law).

A typical criminal defendant will be arraigned and subsequently indicted or held over for trial before a trial court in and for a particular county where the crime occurred, kept in the county jail (if he is not granted bail or cannot make bail), prosecuted by the county's district attorney, and tried before a jury selected from that county. But long-term incarceration is rarely a county responsibility, execution of capital punishment is never a county responsibility, and the state's responses to prisoners' appeals are the responsibility of the state attorney general, who has to defend before the state appellate courts the prosecutions conducted by locally elected district attorneys in the name of the state. Furthermore, county-level trial court judges are officers of the judicial branch of the state government rather than county governments.

In many states, the county controls all unincorporated lands within its boundaries. In states with a township tier, unincorporated land is controlled by the townships. Residents of unincorporated land who are dissatisfied with county-level or township-level resource allocation decisions can attempt to vote to incorporate as a city, town, or village.

A few counties directly provide public transportation themselves, usually in the form of a simple bus system. However, in most counties, public transportation is provided by one of the following: a special district that is coterminous with the county (but exists separately from the county government), a multi-county regional transit authority, or a state agency.

Broad scopeEdit

In western and southern states, more populated counties provide many facilities, such as airports, convention centers, museums, recreation centers, beaches, harbors, zoos, clinics, law libraries, and public housing. They provide services such as child and family services, elder services, mental health services, welfare services, veterans assistance services, animal control, probation supervision, historic preservation, food safety regulation, and environmental health services. They have many additional officials like public defenders, arts commissioners, human rights commissioners, and planning commissioners.

There may be a county fire department and a county police department – as distinguished from fire and police departments operated by individual cities, special districts, or the state government. For example, Gwinnett County, Georgia, and its county seat, the city of Lawrenceville, each have their own police departments. (A separate county sheriff's department is responsible for security of the county courts and administration of the county jail.) In several southern states, public school systems are organized and administered at the county level.

StatisticsEdit

{{#invoke:Labelled list hatnote|labelledList|Main article|Main articles|Main page|Main pages}} Template:Further

Template:As of, there were 2,999 counties, 64 Louisiana parishes, 19 organized boroughs and 11 census areas in Alaska, 9 Councils of Government in Connecticut, 41 independent cities,<ref group="lower-alpha">Prior to July 1, 2016, there were 42 independent cities. At that time, Bedford, Virginia, gave up its city status and became a town within Bedford County.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref></ref> and the District of Columbia for a total of 3,144 counties and county equivalents in the 50 states and District of Columbia.<ref name="PopEstCounties" /> There are an additional 100 county equivalents in the territories of the United States.<ref name="CensusT" /><ref name="CensusCounties2" /><ref name="USMOICounties" /> The average number of counties per state is 62, with a range from the three counties of Delaware to the 254 counties of Texas.

Southern and Midwestern states generally tend to have more counties than Western or Northeastern states, as many Northeastern states are not large enough in area to warrant a large number of counties, and many Western states were sparsely populated when counties were created by their respective state legislatures. The five counties of Rhode Island and eight of the 14 counties of Massachusetts no longer have functional county governments, but continue to exist as legal and census entities. Connecticut abolished county governments in 1960, leaving its eight counties as mere legal and census entities. In 2022, the U.S. Census Bureau recognized the state's nine Councils of Governments as replacement for the state's eight legacy counties for all statistical purposes; full implementation was completed in 2024.

The counties and county equivalents of the United States of America, by state or territory
State, federal district or territory	Total		Subdivisions<ref name=PopEstCounties/>			Average
State, federal district or territory	citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>Template:Efn	citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>	Counties	Equivalents	Total	Population	Land area
Template:Flagicon Alabama	5,157,699	Template:Sort	67	—	67	76,981	Template:Sort
Template:Flagicon Alaska	740,133	Template:Sort	—	30<ref group=lower-alpha>Alaska has 19 organized boroughs and one Unorganized Borough divided into 11 census areas.</ref>	30	24,671	Template:Sort
Template:Flagicon Arizona	7,582,384	Template:Sort	15	—	15	505,492	Template:Sort
Template:Flagicon Arkansas	3,088,354	Template:Sort	75	—	75	41,178	Template:Sort
Template:Flagicon California	39,431,263	Template:Sort	58	—	58	679,849	Template:Sort
Template:Flagicon Colorado	5,957,493	Template:Sort	64	—	64	93,086	Template:Sort
Template:Flagicon Connecticut	3,675,069	Template:Sort	—	9<ref group=lower-alpha>On June 6, 2022, the U.S. Census Bureau formally recognized Connecticut's nine councils of governments as county equivalents instead of the state's eight counties. Connecticut's county governments were disbanded in 1960, and the councils of governments took over some of the local governmental functions. Connecticut's eight historical counties continue to exist in name only, and are no longer considered for statistical purposes.</ref>	9	408,341	Template:Sort
Template:Flagicon Delaware	1,051,917	Template:Sort	3	—	3	350,639	Template:Sort
Template:Flagicon District of Columbia	702,250	Template:Sort	—	1<ref group=lower-alpha>The U.S. Census Bureau and the Office of Management and Budget consider the entire District of Columbia to be a county equivalent.</ref>	1	702,250	Template:Sort
Template:Flagicon Florida	23,372,215	Template:Sort	67	—	67	348,839	Template:Sort
Template:Flagicon Georgia	11,180,878	Template:Sort	159	—	159	70,320	Template:Sort
Template:Flagicon Hawaii	1,446,146	Template:Sort	5	—	5	289,229	Template:Sort
Template:Flagicon Idaho	2,001,619	Template:Sort	44	—	44	45,491	Template:Sort
Template:Flagicon Illinois	12,710,158	Template:Sort	102	—	102	124,609	Template:Sort
Template:Flagicon Indiana	6,924,275	Template:Sort	92	—	92	75,264	Template:Sort
Template:Flagicon Iowa	3,241,488	Template:Sort	99	—	99	32,742	Template:Sort
Template:Flagicon Kansas	2,970,606	Template:Sort	105	—	105	28,291	Template:Sort
Template:Flagicon Kentucky	4,588,372	Template:Sort	120	—	120	38,236	Template:Sort
Template:Flagicon Louisiana	4,597,740	Template:Sort	—	64<ref group=lower-alpha>Louisiana has 64 parishes instead of counties.</ref>	64	71,840	Template:Sort
Template:Flagicon Maine	1,405,012	Template:Sort	16	—	16	87,813	Template:Sort
Template:Flagicon Maryland	6,263,220	Template:Sort	23	1<ref group=lower-alpha>Baltimore, Maryland is an independent city.</ref>	24	260,968	Template:Sort
Template:Flagicon Massachusetts	7,136,171	Template:Sort	14	—	14	509,727	Template:Sort
Template:Flagicon Michigan	10,140,459	Template:Sort	83	—	83	122,174	Template:Sort
Template:Flagicon Minnesota	5,793,151	Template:Sort	87	—	87	66,588	Template:Sort
Template:Flagicon Mississippi	2,943,045	Template:Sort	82	—	82	35,891	Template:Sort
Template:Flagicon Missouri	6,245,466	Template:Sort	114	1<ref group=lower-alpha>St. Louis, Missouri is an independent city.</ref>	115	54,308	Template:Sort
Template:Flagicon Montana	1,137,233	Template:Sort	56	—	56	20,308	Template:Sort
Template:Flagicon Nebraska	2,005,465	Template:Sort	93	—	93	21,564	Template:Sort
Template:Flagicon Nevada	3,267,467	Template:Sort	16	1<ref group=lower-alpha>Carson City, Nevada is an independent city.</ref>	17	192,204	Template:Sort
Template:Flagicon New Hampshire	1,409,032	Template:Sort	10	—	10	140,903	Template:Sort
Template:Flagicon New Jersey	9,500,851	Template:Sort	21	—	21	452,421	Template:Sort
Template:Flagicon New Mexico	2,130,256	Template:Sort	33	—	33	64,553	Template:Sort
Template:Flagicon New York	19,867,248	Template:Sort	62	—	62	320,439	Template:Sort
Template:Flagicon North Carolina	11,046,024	Template:Sort	100	—	100	110,460	Template:Sort
Template:Flagicon North Dakota	796,568	Template:Sort	53	—	53	15,030	Template:Sort
Template:Flagicon Ohio	11,883,304	Template:Sort	88	—	88	135,038	Template:Sort
Template:Flagicon Oklahoma	4,095,393	Template:Sort	77	—	77	53,187	Template:Sort
Template:Flagicon Oregon	4,272,371	Template:Sort	36	—	36	118,677	Template:Sort
Template:Flagicon Pennsylvania	13,078,751	Template:Sort	67	—	67	195,205	Template:Sort
Template:Flagicon Rhode Island	1,112,308	Template:Sort	5	—	5	222,462	Template:Sort
Template:Flagicon South Carolina	5,478,831	Template:Sort	46	—	46	119,105	Template:Sort
Template:Flagicon South Dakota	924,669	Template:Sort	66	—	66	14,010	Template:Sort
Template:Flagicon Tennessee	7,227,750	Template:Sort	95	—	95	76,082	Template:Sort
Template:Flagicon Texas	31,290,831	Template:Sort	254	—	254	123,192	Template:Sort
Template:Flagicon Utah	3,503,613	Template:Sort	29	—	29	120,814	Template:Sort
Template:Flagicon Vermont	648,493	Template:Sort	14	—	14	46,321	Template:Sort
Template:Flagicon Virginia	8,811,195	Template:Sort	95	38<ref group=lower-alpha>Virginia has 38 independent cities.</ref>	133	66,250	Template:Sort
Template:Flagicon Washington	7,958,180	Template:Sort	39	—	39	204,056	Template:Sort
Template:Flagicon West Virginia	1,769,979	Template:Sort	55	—	55	32,181	Template:Sort
Template:Flagicon Wisconsin	5,960,975	Template:Sort	72	—	72	82,791	Template:Sort
Template:Flagicon Wyoming	587,618	Template:Sort	23	—	23	25,549	Template:Sort
United States (50 states and the District of Columbia)	340,110,988	Template:Sort	2,999	145	3,144	108,178	Template:Sort
Template:Flagicon American Samoa Template:Efn	51,504	Template:Sort	—	5	5	11,104	Template:Sort
Template:Flagicon Guam<ref group=lower-alpha>Guam does not have counties. All of Guam is counted as one county equivalent by the U.S. Census Bureau.</ref>	162,742	Template:Sort	—	1	1	162,742	Template:Sort
Template:Flagicon Northern Mariana Islands<ref group=lower-alpha>The Northern Mariana Islands do not have counties. The U.S. Census Bureau counts the 4 municipalities of the Northern Mariana Islands as county equivalents.</ref>	52,263	Template:Sort	—	4	4	13,066	Template:Sort
Template:Flagicon Puerto Rico<ref group=lower-alpha>Puerto Rico does not have counties. The U.S. Census Bureau counts Puerto Rico's 78 municipalities as county equivalents.</ref>	3,203,295	Template:Sort	—	78	78	41,068	Template:Sort
Template:Flagicon U.S. Minor Outlying Islands<ref group=lower-alpha>The U.S. Minor Outlying Islands do not have counties. The U.S. Census Bureau counts each of the 9 island groups in the U.S. Minor Outlying Islands as county equivalents.</ref><ref group=lower-alpha>The Minor Outlying Islands have no permanent residents. All reported population consists of temporary military and scientific habitation.</ref>	160	Template:Sort	—	9	9	18	Template:Sort
Template:Flagicon U.S. Virgin Islands<ref group=lower-alpha>The U.S. Virgin Islands do not have counties. The U.S. Census Bureau counts the 3 main islands (Saint Croix, Saint Thomas and Saint John) as county equivalents.</ref>	104,901	Template:Sort	—	3	3	34,967	Template:Sort
United States (50 states, the District of Columbia, and territories)	330,744,054	Template:Sort	2,999	245	3,244	101,987	Template:Sort

PopulationEdit

File:County population map.webp

County population map
2022 Census data

The average U.S. county population was 104,435 in 2019, while the median county, which is Nicholas County, West Virginia, had a population of 25,965 in 2019. The most populous county is Los Angeles County, California, with 10,014,009 residents in 2020. This number is greater than the populations of 41 U.S. states, and is only slightly smaller than the combined population of the 10 least populous states and Washington, D.C. It also makes the population of Los Angeles County 17.4 times greater than that of the least populous state, Wyoming.

The second most populous county is Cook County, Illinois, with a population of 5,275,541.<ref name="USCensus2015">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Cook County's population is larger than that of 28 individual U.S. states and the combined populations of the six smallest states.<ref name=USCensus2015 />

The least populous county is Loving County, Texas, with 64 residents in 2020. Eight county equivalents in the U.S. territories have no human population: Rose Atoll, Northern Islands Municipality, Baker Island, Howland Island, Jarvis Island, Johnston Atoll, Kingman Reef, and Navassa Island.<ref name="USMOICounties"/><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The remaining three islands in the U.S. Minor Outlying Islands (Midway Atoll, Palmyra Atoll and Wake Island) have small non-permanent human populations. The county equivalent with the smallest non-zero population counted in the census is Swains Island, American Samoa (17 people),<ref>Template:Cite encyclopedia</ref> although since 2008 this population has not been permanent either.<ref>Unlocking the Secrets of Swains Island Template:Webarchive, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, September 2013.</ref><ref>Swains Island, Charles A. Veley, 27 November 2008.</ref><ref>Assessment of the Birds of Swains Island, American Samoa, Andrew Titmus, Nicola Arcilla, and Christopher Lepczyk, The Wilson Journal of Ornithology, March 2016.</ref><ref>Atoll envisioned as a model for sustainability, Star Advertiser, 20 September 2014.</ref>

The most densely populated county or county equivalent is New York County, New York (coextensive with the New York City Borough of Manhattan), with Template:Convert in 2015. The Yukon–Koyukuk Census Area, Alaska, is both the most extensive and the least densely populated county or county equivalent with Template:Convert in 2015.<ref name=USCensus2015 />

In the 50 states (plus the District of Columbia), a total of 981 counties have a population over 50,000; 592 counties have a population over 100,000; 137 counties have a population over 500,000; 45 counties have a population over 1,000,000; and 14 counties have a population over 2,000,000. At the other extreme, 35 counties have a population under 1,000; 307 counties have a population under 5,000; 709 counties have a population under 10,000; and 1,492 counties have a population between 10,000 and 50,000.<ref name=USCensus2015 />

AreaEdit

File:NicholasCountySignWV.jpg

A highway sign designating the border between Nicholas and Greenbrier counties in West Virginia along a secondary road

At the 2000 U.S. census, the median land area of U.S. counties was Template:Convert, which is two-thirds of the median land area of a ceremonial county of England, and a little more than a quarter of the median land area of a French département. Counties in the western United States typically have a much larger land area than those in the eastern United States. For example, the median land area of counties in Georgia is Template:Convert, whereas in Utah it is Template:Convert.

The most extensive county or county equivalent is the Yukon–Koyukuk Census Area, Alaska, with a land area of 145,505 square miles (376,856 km²). All nine of the most extensive county equivalents are in Alaska. The most extensive county is San Bernardino County, California, with a land area of 20,057 square miles (51,947 km²). The least extensive county is Kalawao County, Hawaii, with a land area of 11.991 square miles (31.058 km²). The least extensive county equivalent in the 50 states is the independent city of Falls Church, Virginia, with a land area of 1.999 square miles (5.177 km²).<ref name=NACO/> If U.S. territories are included, the least extensive county equivalent is Kingman Reef, with a land area of 0.01 square miles (0.03 km²).<ref name="Kingman Reef">Template:Cite encyclopedia</ref>

Geographic relationships between cities and countiesEdit

In some states, a municipality may be in only one county and may not annex territory in adjacent counties, but in the majority of states, the state constitution or state law allows municipalities to extend across county boundaries. At least 32 states include municipalities in multiple counties. Dallas, for example, contains portions of five counties, while numerous other cities comprise portions of four counties. New York City is an unusual case because it encompasses multiple entire counties in one city. Each of those counties is coextensive with one of the five boroughs of the city: Manhattan (New York County), The Bronx (Bronx County), Queens (Queens County), Brooklyn (Kings County), and Staten Island (Richmond County).

Explanatory notesEdit

Template:Reflist

ReferencesEdit