Counties of the Wyoming Territory operated under commission form of local government, each county commission consisting of three elected members, and the legal status of the county was by territorial statute that of "a body corporate and politic."

The county commission form of government in the Wyoming Territory might be said to have been directly inherited, for at the time of the Organic Act of Wyoming, July 25, 1868, two counties, Laramie and Carter, were existent, having been created and organized under the Dakota Territorial Laws. The Dakota Legislative Assembly of 1868-1869 created Albany and Carbon Counties, making four counties at the time the Wyoming Territory completed its organization May 19, 1869.

With this system of government already existing, it might seem natural that a county form of government would be adopted by the new Territory. There were, however, some who advocated a township form of government, and the pros and cons of such a change were fairly considered by the Legislative Assembly of 1869. It was generally conceded that, owing to the vastness of the Territory and the sparsity of its settlement, a township form of government would hardly be advantageous to the Territory as a whole. It followed that on December 10, 1869 the First Territorial Legislative Assembly passed an act declaring each organized county within the Territory to be "a body corporate and politic."

County Government

"The formation or creation of a county is a legislative function, while the organization of a county is an administrative function evolving from the consent of the people of the formed county by administrative or executive officers acting under the general laws." [W. R. S. 1931-29-201-f.n.]

A county was termed "created" when, through legislative procedure, its boundaries were defined and the necessary prerequisites for its organization were set forth.

After a county was created and it was shown to have the mentioned prerequisites, the governor, on petition, appointed three county commissioners whose duty it was to at once call a special election within the county to elect county officers. When these officers were duly elected and had qualified by taking the oath of office the county was said to have completed its organization. The Organic Act of Wyoming did not provide for the creation and organization of counties; it empowered the governor alone in the first instance to appoint all county officers who were to hold their offices until the end of the first session of the legislative assembly.

The first Wyoming law dealing with the organization of counties, approved December 8, 1875, stipulated that, upon petition of 500 electors residing within the limits of the county desiring organization, the governor should appoint three of said electors as a board of commissioners to organize the county. On December 13, 1879, an act was approved amending the 1875 law by changing the number of required electors from 500 to 300.

On March 10, 1882 the Seventh Legislative Assembly passed an act providing that after the county commissioners of any and all counties from which a new county was carved had ascertained and made a full report as to the existing indebtedness and property value of their respective counties, the courts should determine the proportion of indebtedness which the new county should bear.

The Tenth Legislative Assembly passed an act, March 9, 1888, providing that to the petition, signed by 300 electors of the county desiring organization, should be attached the affidavits of two or more reputable electors, residents of said county, bearing witness to the bona fide residence of the signers of said petition.

It will be noted in the roster of counties created and organized under Wyoming Territorial Law, which follows this essay, that in a number of instances a period of years elapsed between the date of creation of a county and its date of organization. This was due to the inability of the county to fulfill the prerequisites of organization set by law. Albany, Carbon, Laramie, and Carter (later Sweetwater) Counties were originally created and organized under the Dakota Laws of 1867 and 1868; the boundaries of Albany, Carbon, and Carter were redefined by the First Wyoming Legislative Assembly, 1869; Laramie County boundaries remained the same, except the eastern boundary, which was defined by Wyoming Organic Act. Uinta County, first new county created by Wyoming Law, December 1, 1869, included those portions of the Territory between the 33° and 34° West longitude from Washington and the

41° and 45° North latitude. That portion of the territory was part of Oneida County, Idaho, part of Green River County, Utah, and the extreme northwest portion of Carter County, Wyoming.

County Officers

The First Wyoming Territorial Legislative Assembly passed an act, December 10, 1869, creating the several county offices and defining the duties thereof." A board of three county commissioners elected by the people for a term of two years exercised "the power of a county as a body politic and corporate." Other officers elected by the people for a term of two years were judge of probate who was also ex-officio county treasurer, county clerk, sheriff who was also ex-officio county collector, county assessor, coroner, county surveyor, county prosecuting attorney, county superintendent of schools, justice of the peace, and constable.

The First Legislative Assembly, 1869, passed an act, naming the county officers for the four counties, Albany, Carbon, Laramie, and Carter (Sweetwater); the governor vetoed this bill; some controversy between the republican governor and a democratic legislative assembly ensued; Judge Kingman of the Territorial Supreme Court was requested for an opinion, which he delivered in favor of the governor. The county officers appointed by this legislative assembly never took office; the governor either retained those who were in office or appointed new ones; the governor exercised this power until September 6, 1870, when the first regular Territorial election for county officers took place; the county officers elected at this election did not take office until the first day of November, the beginning of the official year. The official year was changed by the 1873 Legislative Assembly to the first Monday of January.

Counties Created Under Dakota Laws

The first four counties were by Dakota laws. Dakota Laws of 1862, also of 1866-67, required a county to obtain at least twenty legal qualified voters before it was entitled to organize.

According to Dakota Laws 1864-65, county officers, elected or appointed, were required to qualify, by taking oath of office, on or before the first Monday of January each year, as county officers were elected annually.

The Sixth Dakota Legislative Assembly, 1866-67. created Laramie County, January 9, 1867, also appointed nine county officers, who were to hold office until their successor were elected at the next general election, and were duly elected and qualified: the Legislative Assembly adjourned January 12, 1867; if the Laramie County officers abided by the provisions of the law, they must have qualified immediately after the county was created.

The Seventh Dakota Legislative Assembly, 1867-68, on January 3, 1868, redefined the western boundary of Laramie County, annulled the election held in the fall of 1867 electing county officers for Laramie County, and appointed fourteen county officers to hold office until the next general election, which was held October 13, 1868; the county officers elected in 1868 held office until the governor of Wyoming either retained or appointed county officers who held office from after May 19, 1869, when Wyoming completed its organization, until November 1, 1870, when the county officers elected on September 6, 1870--the first Wyoming election to elect county officers--went into office.

The Seventh Dakota Legislative Assembly, 1867-68, created Carter (later Sweetwater) County, December 27, 1867, appointed nine county officers, and provided for three county commissioners to qualify by the first day of May next (1868).

The Eighth Dakota Legislative Assembly, 1868-1869, created Albany and Carbon Counties, December 16, 1868, also appointed eighteen county officers for Albany County; seven county officers for Carbon County, and left vacancies in the county offices, to be filled by the county commissioners. If they abided by the Dakota Laws, the county officers of these two counties were required to qualify in January 1869. No authoritative specific dates of the original organization can be located on these four counties, only the day as the law provided.

The First Wyoming Assembly, 1869, appointed county officers for these four counties; these county officers never took office, as the governor vetoed these appointments, his veto being sustained by Judge Kingman.

Laramie County

Laramie County was created and boundaries defined as, "That all that portion of the Territory of Dakota west of the one hundred and fourth meridian west ***" and Fort Sanders named the county seat on January 9, 1867, by the Sixth Dakota Legislative Assembly which convened December 3, 1866, and adjourned January 12, 1867.

The eastern boundary of Laramie County was 104° west from Greenwich until July 25, 1868, when the Wyoming Organic Act defined the eastern boundaries of the Wyoming Territory as 27° west from Washington which corresponds with 104° 03' 06.276" west from Greenwich.

Carter County

Carter County was created, boundaries defined, and South Pass City named the county seat on December 27, 1867, by the Seventh Legislative Assembly of Dakota Territory which convened December 2, 1867, and adjourned January 10, 1868. This Assembly redefined the western boundary of Laramie County and changed the county seat from Fort Sanders to Cheyenne, January 3, 1868. At the time of the passage of the Organic Act, July 25, 1868, creating Wyoming Territory, Wyoming contained two counties, Laramie and Carter.

Albany and Carbon Counties

Albany and Carbon Counties were created, and boundaries defined, December 16, 1868, by the Eighth Legislative Assembly of Dakota Territory which convened December 7, 1868, and adjourned January 15, 1869. Laramie City was named the county seat of Albany County, Rawling's Spring the county seat of Carbon County.

At the time the Territory of Wyoming completed its organization, May 19, 1869, it had four counties, Carter, Carbon, Albany and Laramie, created by the aforementioned Dakota Territorial Legislative Assemblies.

Those portions of Utah and Idaho Territories included within Wyoming Territory by the Organic Act were unorganized from July 25, 1868, to December 1, 1869.

Counties Created under Wyoming Territorial Laws

The first Wyoming Legislative Assembly accepted the western boundary of Laramie County as defined by the Dakota laws, but the eastern boundary was changed according to the Wyoming Organic Act to the 27° west longitude from Washington, from the 104° west longitude from Greenwich (Dakota laws) when the Dakota Legislative Assembly created Laramie County in 1867.

The 1869 Wyoming Legislative Assembly changed the name of Carter County to Sweetwater County.

The boundaries of Albany and Carbon Counties, and the eastern boundary of Sweetwater County remained the same.

Uinta County

The first Wyoming Legislative Assembly which convened October 12, 1869, and adjourned December 10, 1869, created and defined the boundaries of Uinta County December 1, 1869, to include that portion of the Territory between the 33° and 34° west longitude from Washington and the 41° and 45° north latitude. This included those portions of Utah and Idaho east of the 34° west longitude from Washington and the northwest portion of Sweetwater County. The town of Merril was named the county seat.

Crook and Pease/Johnson Counties

The Fourth Legislative Assembly created and defined the boundaries of Crook and Pease Counties, December 8, 1875, the county seats of said counties to be located at the places having the highest number of votes at the first election of each county. The Sixth Legislative Assembly, on December 13, 1879, changed the name of Pease County to Johnson County.

In 1872 Congress created Yellowstone National Park. This was taken from Uinta County.

The Third Legislative Assembly, 1873, changed the county seat of Sweetwater County from South Pass City to Green River.

Fremont County

The Eighth Wyoming Legislative Assembly created Fremont County March 5, 1884, defining its boundaries and naming Lander the county seat.

Converse, Natrona and Sheridan Counties

In 1886 the Ninth Wyoming Legislative Assembly changed the southwestern boundary of Albany County, the southeastern and southwestern boundaries of Carbon County, and the southeastern boundary of Sweetwater County.

The Tenth Wyoming Legislative Assembly created and defined the boundaries of Converse. Natrona and Sheridan Counties, March 9, 1888. The county seat of each county was located at the place receiving the greatest number of votes at the organization election.

Weston and Big Horn Counties

The Eleventh Legislative Assembly created and defined the boundaries of Weston and Big Horn Counties March 12, 1890.

Status of Counties at the End of the Territorial Period

At the time of the Constitutional Convention, September 1889, there were eleven counties, but only ten were organized; at the time of Statehood, July 10, 1890, there were thirteen counties, but only twelve were organized.

There were twelve organized counties whose qualified electors could vote at the first State elect ion, September 11, 1890.

There were three counties created by the Wyoming Territorial Legislative Assemblies which did not take part in the Constitutional Convention: Natrona, created March 9, 1888, organized April 11, 1890, after the Convention; Weston, created March 12, 1890, after the Convention, organized May 16, 1890; Big Horn, created March 12, 1890, did not organize until January 4, 1897.

The Tenth Wyoming Legislature, 1909, created and defined the boundaries of Park County. This is the first county created by State laws.

The Eleventh Wyoming Legislature, 1911, created and defined the boundaries of seven new counties: Campbell, Goshen, Hot Springs, Lincoln, Niobrara, Platte, and Washakie.

The Sixteenth Wyoming Legislature, 1921, created and defined the boundaries of two new counties, Teton and Sublette.

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