Adams

Formed November 28, 1883 (30^th county)

Adams County (20,612), Ritzville (1,751), Othello (8,548)

The tan brick Art Deco facility was built in 1941.  It is located on a square at Broadway Avenue, Adams Street, Alder Avenue, and Washington Street.  Interstate Highway 90 Business passes seven blocks to the east.  Whitehouse & Price provided the building designs.  This structure replaced a 1914 version of the courthouse and there was an 1891 courthouse earlier.  Adams County was created on November 28, 1883 from Whitman County as the 30^th county with Ritzville as the only county seat.  It is named for United States President John Adams.  The county seat was named for settler Philip Ritz. 

Adams County government consists of a sheriff, an attorney, a clerk, a treasurer, an auditor, and an assessor (executive).  It has 3 Commissioners (legislative.)  One Superior Court Judge and Two District Court Judges serve Adams County (judicial.)  The county is located in the southeast part of Washington.  Spokane, Washington is northeast and Seattle, Washington is northwest of the county.  The county center is 21.8 miles Southwest of Ritzville nearer Lind.  The county is surrounded clockwise by Lincoln, Whitman, Franklin, and Grant counties. 

The area of the county is 1925 square miles.  It is 14 out of 39 in the state.  It ranks 31 out of 39 in population in the state.  It has a density of 10.7 persons per square mile making it 32 out of 39 in the state.  Adams County has 54.0% of its population in its incorporated areas.  Interstate Highway 90 enters the county from the northeast, Lincoln County, and exits to the west, Grant County.  United States Highway 395 is joined with Interstate Highway 90 from Lincoln County, splits and continues southwest into Franklin County.  The county resembles a fat capital letter J.  Ritzville is located in the northeast quarter of the county.  Othello is in the southwest quarter of the county.  Ritzville is the county seat and Othello is the largest city.  Ritzville is 8.5% of the county population while Othello is 41.5% of the county population.  The largest city is pronounced OE-THEL-OE.