Humboldt

Formed May 12, 1853 (35^th county)

Humboldt County (136,465), Eureka (26,561)

The Modern style governmental concrete courthouse was built in 1956.  It sits on I Street between 4^th and 5^th streets.  United States Highway 101 is 4^th Street heading south and 5^th Street heading north through Eureka.  Mitchell Van Bourg was the building designer.  An 1889 courthouse also was located in Eureka with Eureka being the only county seat.  On May 12, 1853, Humboldt County was created from Trinity County as the 35^th county.  The county’s name comes from Explorer Alexander Freiherr von Humboldt.  The county seat was named by an early settler as Eureka, Greek for “I have found it.” 

Humboldt County government consists of a sheriff, assessor, controller, and treasurer (executive).  It has 5 Supervisors (legislative.)  Five Superior Court Judges, clerk, and counsel serve Humboldt County (judicial.)  The county is located in the far northwest part of the state.  Its entire western border is the Pacific Ocean.  San Francisco, California is far south of the county.  The county center is 24.8 miles East of Eureka nearer Kneeland.  The county is surrounded clockwise by Del Norte, Siskiyou, Trinity, and Mendocino counties and the Pacific Ocean.  The overall shape is a tall I but there is a significant extension in the southwest and a small one to the northeast.  Eureka is near to the north south center in the county but on the west coast.  Eureka is the county seat and the largest city.  It is 19.5% of the county population.  The county is pronounced HUM-BOELT.  The county seat is pronounced UE-REE-KA.  

The area of the county is 3573 square miles.  It is 14 out of 58 in the state.  It ranks 35 out of 58 in population in the state.  It has a density of 38.2 persons per square mile making it 42 out of 58 in the state.  Humboldt County has 47.1% of its population in its incorporated areas.  United States Highway 101 enters from the north, Del Norte County, and exits to the south, Mendocino County.  This county is in the Eureka-Arcata-Fortuna Micropolitan Statistical Area.

Trinidad