Alturas County, Idaho Genealogy

Quick Facts
Alturas County was named for "mountain summits."

Parent County
1864 -- Alturas County, Idaho was created 4 February 1864 from the Idaho Territory. County seat: Its county seat was in Rocky Bar until 1882 when it was relocated to Hailey

Boundary Changes
8 January 1881 -- Custer County was created from a part of Alturas County.

7 February 1889 -- Elmore County was created from a part of Alturas County.

In 1895, Alturas County was dissolved and split to form two new counties, to circumvent a recent state supreme court decision striking down an earlier county reorganization:

5 March 1895 -- Blaine was created from part of Alturas County

18 March 1895 -- Lincoln was created from a part of Alturas County

Resources
Many of the older court, land, naturalization, probate, pension, and vital records for Alturas County have been microfilmed and are available at the in Salt Lake City and at the Idaho State Historical Society in Boise. Details of the county records in these respective institutions can be obtained from their online catalogs or listings. Original records which have been microfilmed and more recent records are in the county courthouse in Idaho City.

The original records of Alturas County are presently kept in Blaine County. Some have been transferred to the State Historical Society Library in Boise.

Census
For a summary of census records for the state of Idaho, see Idaho Census Records.

The 1890 federal census for Idaho was destroyed. However, the Idaho State Historical Society Public Archives and Research Library is creating a list of 1890 Idaho residents by indexing a variety of records, 1885-1894. This reconstructed list will substitute for the destroyed 1890 federal census. Alturas County is included in this reconstructed census.

Court
Some of the early court records of Alturas County, Idaho have been microfilmed as part of the records of Blaine County and are available at the Idaho State Historical Society in Boise. The records filmed are for about 1865 through 1895 and include civil suits, divorce papers, and judgment dockets. Copies of these microfilmed court records are also available at the in Salt Lake City.

History
A history of Alturas County is available online.

The History of Alturas and Blaine counties, Idahowas published in 1938. It is available at various libraries and through Heritage Quest.