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Yavapai County reflects the history of the old west and a perfect blend of the future. Remnants of U.S. Cavalry forts, Indian dwellings, gold rush boomtowns, abandoned mines, Spanish ranches, homesteads and vast tracts of uninhabited public lands exist side by side with modern housing developments, industry and business here in the mountain heart of Arizona. Yavapai County, with its county seat in Prescott, encompasses a 8,125 square mile area, with a population of approximately 180,260 (U.S. Census 2002).
Click on the Yavapai County map below for more information on the various cities in Yavapai County
More Demographic Information
Geography
Yavapai is the northern most county of those listed in Arizona. Maricopa is located directly to the south, with Gila to the east, and La Paz to the west.
Municipalities in Yavapai County
History
Yavapai County is one of the four original Arizona counties formed in September of 1864, one year after the Arizona Territory was established. The County was named after the Yavapai Tribe, whose name means the "people of the sun."
The County was originally 65,000 square miles and was called the "Mother of Counties" because Apache, Coconino, Gila, Maricopa and Navajo Counties were later formed from it. The territorial government was also born in Yavapai County, the capital being originally located in the County in the City of Prescott.
Pre-historic Indian artifacts can be found in ancient Indian Pueblos and mounds throughout the County. The greatest concentration of artifacts are found in the Verde Valley where the Sinagua Indians arrived around 500 A.D. and created dwellings at Tuzigoot and Montezuma's Castle.
With an area of 8,125 square miles the County is larger than Connecticut, Delaware, Rhode Island and New Jersey. Yavapai County is approximately the same size as Massachusetts.
Only 26 percent of the land in the County is in private hands (individuals or corporations). Thirty-eight percent of the land is administered by the U. S. Forest Service, nine percent by the U.S. Bureau of Land Management, 27 percent by the State of Arizona, and less than 0.5 percent is held in trust as Indian reservations. There are three Indian reservations located in the County - the Yavapai-Prescott Indian Reservation, the Clarkdale and the Camp Verde Indian Reservation.
Yavapai County is once again experiencing a boom period with rapid increase in population growth. The clear dry air and moderate temperatures attract people of retirement age as well as those wishing to raise families away from the congestion and crime of the cities. According to the 1990 census the County population was 107,714, the population estimate is now 129,500.
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