Formed May 16, 1893 (57th county)
Madera County (156,259), Madera (66,229)
The Modern style courthouse replaced 1901 and 1912 versions in this valley community. It is located at 6th Street and G Streets. California State Highway 99 is one block southwest of the site. The new courthouse and an Administrative Center were built in 2012 using A. C. Martin Partners designs. Madera has been the only county seat. Madera County was created on May 16, 1893 from Fresno County as the 57th county. The Spanish word for “Woods” is the source for Madera.
Madera County government consists of a sheriff, assessor, controller, and treasurer (executive). It has 5 Supervisors (legislative.) Eight Superior Court Judges, clerk, and counsel serve Madera County (judicial.) The county is located in the center of the state northwest of Fresno, California. The geographical center of California is 38 miles east of Madera in the county. The San Joaquin River forms the west and south borders of the county. The county center is 35.3 miles Northeast of Madera nearer Coarsegold. The county is surrounded clockwise by Mariposa, Tuolumne, Mono, Fresno, and Merced counties. A flat J is the best description of the county’s shape. The city of Madera is south and west of the county center. Madera is the county seat and the largest city. It is 42.4% of the county population. The county and county seat are pronounced MA-DEER-A.
The area of the county is 2138 square miles. It is 25 out of 58 in the state. It ranks 32 out of 58 in population in the state. It has a density of 73.1 persons per square mile making it 35 out of 58 in the state. Madera County has 54.6% of its population in its incorporated areas. There are no Interstates or United States Highways in the county. This county is in the Madera-Chowchilla Metropolitan Statistical Area.
Chowchilla
Madera
